3503 




THE DRAMA 



OF 



MANGHETTO 



AND 



SELECTED POEMS 



BY 



WILLIAM F. BLUME 



Price 50 Cents 





THE DRAMA 



OF 



M ANGHETTO 



AND 



SELECTED POEMS 



BY 



WILLIAM F. BLUME 






■fD 



V^^ 



Copyright 1918 

by 

WILLIAM F. BLUME 



APR -I l^i^ 
©C1.A494387 

Pnnters 

NORTH DAKOTA HERALD 

Dickinson, N. D. 



This work is dedicated to my esteemed friend 
Arthur E. Skidmore, whose knowledge of Indian lore 
is appreciable. 

THE AUTHOR 
Dickinson, N. D., January 30, 1918 



CONTENTS 



Page 

Manghetto 9 

Rune Hespar 108 

Tleconciliation 129 

Fish Lake 129 

Blackjack 130 

Vanity 130 

The Miracle 131 

Tip Eli 131 

St. Regis 134 

Dixon 135 

The Pacific 136 

Eternal Flames 137 



PERSONAE 



ACt I, Muspah and Manghetto. 

Act II. George and Herman; two laborers; Mang- 
hetto and Clara; Dexter and Foley; four 
journeymen. 

Act ni. Joseph and Simon ; Manghetto, two Direc- 
tors and Secretary ; two citizens ; the con- 
course of the world. 

Act IV. Judge Prim, Clerk, Lawyer etc. in Court; 
Maria, Sadie, Alma; the June Paradox, 
a semi-allegoi'ical procession of great 
many parts; Manghetto and Shade of 
Muspah. 

Act V. Super-Sphere with Squintum, Tillicum, 
Killaxthokle, Clamotomish, Chiltoc, Po- 
toshee, Palisk, Quinolt, Chilate, Cala- 
thorstle; a choir and Manghetto and 
Clai'a. 



— 9 — 
MANGHETTO. 
ACT I. 

Muspah. 

The restless throng- pursues an idle play, 
And jud<?ment walketh slipshod on parade; 
The fleshling's jolts are noted by the way, 
And boredom's I'eig^n is never long delayed; 
Bewildei'ing' is the concourse in its quest; 
The turmoil slides unbroken on the stone; 
Man's happiness becomes an evening's jest, 
And bold pervei-seness sits upon a throne; 
True, men are found, in eveiy place, who dread 
No earnest toil or uprightness of zeal ; 
Nor greatness is esteemed as being dead, — 
True greatness that commandeth heart and steel ; — 
But there remain so many whom we find 
Upon a pedestal where craft is king, 
Whose labor's fruit, sprung from the dulcet mind. 
Has potent force and venom in its sting; 
Their foul example scatters like a weed 
Whose growth remains unchecked within the field, 
Where teeming blossoms fructify in seed 
Which stoi-m-blasts spread for futui-e's greater yield. 

Lest some may think that it afi"oi-ds delight 
To pierce the soies and bubbles daily seen, 
I will defer to dwell upon the blight. 
At least till I have aid to piess the glean; 
If now I deign ti-ue knowledge to possess 
Of all the present and the buried past. 
They take offense, and, claiming I transgress, 
The silly scoffers hate me to the last; 
I find it hard to fathom what they mean, 
For nothing pleases, nothing has a goal ; 
But as I live, a stimulus so lean 
Impels poor scratching for a mite of toll. 

The hours pass. Soon I expect my friend 
Manghetto, by appointment duly made. 
To be at hand. 1 pui'posely intend 
That, ere we part, the past will cast its shade 
Upon his keen endeavors, which acquit 
Life's duties as a task with ease unrolled ; 
Success he craves, and this, I may admit. 
He can both find and honorably hold; 



— 10 — 

But figment that some sigii or charmer's suell 
Adorns the pathways ti-ead beneath his feet, 
We must eradicate; the barren shell 
Serves but as plaything- when companions meet. 

And then what profits frivolous demean, 

Such as the people, aye. both young- and old, 

Seem much determined on, though it be seen 

That mere enamel fills the place of gold? 

Why are they so inclined to things of dross? 

Ah! venturing with these questions to the throng. 

If ninety-nine account it as no loss, 

Perhaps it is perceived by one as wrong; 

Some men will plead excuses, which were well 

If lack of knowledge had a plea in law; 

Matured or no they all must learn to dwell 

Where life's sufficiencies find strength to draw; 

No age is like the age of golden youth. 

When day-dreams follow night with strident pace, 

And outward hollowness reveals the truth 

That flows as sa\'ing oil upon the race; 

And though it seem of migratory turn, 

To scenes attached that change with every moon, 

Yet its perception stirs those things to learn 

Which ever after prove a priceless boon; 

Stern duty's call must finally be faced 

By grown-up man ; and he has double pains 

Whose blood, from many nations interlaced, 

In artful tune is coursing through his veins; 

In ancient times they built up Babel's tower; 

The tongues' confusion left it quite undone; 

We do not thus divert inherent power, 

But many tongues amalgamate in one. 

But hark! There's someone knocking at the door; 
No other but a friend can thus arrive: 
A welcome as he never had before, 
And. a surprise, I shall with care contrive. 

Manghetto (entering) 

Idle never, busy ever; 
Always working as if mind 
Must create with full endeavor. 
Or be doomed to fall behind ; 
Thus I left you, thus the present 
Shows the self-same attitude; 
Why not rest, or what is pleasant 
Weave into an interlude? 



— 11 — 

Muspah. 

An oldish man, whose years were full of toil, 
You say oug-ht now find moments that give rest; 
Round idleness the devil throws his coil, 
And therefor work, no matter what, is best; 
Yet not with work was I eng-ag-ed just now, 
Unless as such you clothe it, but in thought 
Perspective, that with rcti'ospection's plow 
In furrows new the old to light has brought; 
Quite often has my time been thus employed: 
The people's past, the same as we to-day, 
Had joy and pain, and war which peace destroyed, 
And aspirations rudely swept away; 
They had theii; bickerings which often i-ose 
From animus of an unbending aim ; 
Sometimes sweet peace would beckon only those 
Who worshipt God and called the runt a dame, 

Mangheito 

Why should we vainly try to search the past 
And let it with the present intei'fere? 
The past is dead, and all its fields so vast. 
They properly sink to anothei- sphere; 
There are enough of daily tasks to do. 
Which sometimes lengthen out to fearful size ; 
And ere forsooth with one you're fairly through, 
Another one your duty soon espies; 
My feelings seem to shrmk from ancient talefe 
As if these burned and seared the living flesh; 
The blood congeals from all their torturous gales, 
Until the present starts the pulse afresh. 

Muspah 

You wrap yourself in ugliness. Give heed 
That gradually such passions are consumed. 
As they unciuenched may to disaster lead, 
And thereupon fond hopes be pierced and doomed. 
Your reasons are not cogent; they are void; 
They take no cognizance that all the woi-ld, 
Deprived of what is past, were soon destroyed 
And to infernal depths and chasms hurled; 
The passing time, relentless in its sweep, 
Stamps out no doubt some records that are vain ; 
But it leaves man its sweetest fruit to reap, 
Though he be heir to some unpleasant pain; 
These records that pertain to humankind 



— 12 — 

Cannot be blotted out by merest whim, 
For forces that control the heart and mind 
Are one with time, though they to you be dim ; 
With banishment of ages that are floAvn, 
And with forgetfulness as daily blest. 
All present hope were dead, nor could atone 
For fond to-morrows that establish rest, 

Manuhetto 

It's consonant with fealty which we owe 
Unto ourselves, that we reject the thing 
Whose all repellant currents blindly throw- 
In the arena but a hollow ring. 

Muspah 

A hollow ring? You are quite deaf, I fear, 

Manghetto 

I speak but metaphorically now, 

Muspah 

Thus theologians entertain the ear, 
Those in particular with wrinkled brow, 

Manghetto 

That we must disagree is clear: 
Life of to-day I choose to seize; 
And if the past be ever near, — 
Why, ril content myself with ease; — 
If I hear the ancients rumble 
In the shuttles of our time. 
Be it so ; I shall not grumble. 
Or condemn it as a crime. 

Muspah 

If aught it were, my condemnation 
Had surely reached it long ago; 
But since I find therein true gain, 
It were a})surd to now abstain 
To sift and gather information 
Wherein hinge mankind's weal and woe. 
All precepts live that they be taken 
Home to ourselves ; and men agree 
That truth and honor stand unshaken 
Since olden times; but what is base. 
The things perversed and tinged with wrong. 
Found never favor; nor with grace 
Were these adorned in ancient song 
Which traversed all the land and sea. 



10 

Manghetto 

But morals are evolved in every age; 
Acts which are lawful now may not be right 
When we shall pass beyond this mortal stage ; 
This all men verify by second sight. 

Muspah 

Ah! Specious pretexts, how these thrive! 
Uncalled, ungoverned they arrive! 
Must I charge this slattern maiden, 
All unkempt, yet heavy laden? 
Listen! All ages had some active men 
Who in their day to customs did resort; 
Acquiring life these straddled with the pen 
Into the law, aye, to the law of tort; 
Such laws are incidental ; social need 
Discards old customs ; and if new appear, 
These, too, may, with accelerating speed, 
Wrapt round with laws, inspire men with fear. 
Real I'ight and wi-ong is ironclad in form 
And cannot change ; all nature would protest 
Against the desecration ; issued storm 
Would pauperize all things in the unrest; 
But whatsoever be the primal source 
Of upright conduct, may no act ensue 
By any man but it portray with force: 
The golden rule and tenets always true. 

Manghetto 

The people's schools and many pulpits preach 
Some such a doctrine as related last ; 
Yet the prevailing practice does not reach 
The core thereof; quite the reverse is cast 
Unfailingly as spice into the sea; 
The contact seems unnatural thus to be, 
For all the gushing, foaming, pulsing life, 
Resulting fi'om the intake creates stir 
Of permeating restlessness and strife, 
And is repulsive, I therefrom infer. 

Muspah 

You now have hit the reptile on the head: 
Yet hope prevails, as the result implies: 
As we the screens in proper seasons spread 
To ward off pests, mosquitoes, bugs and flies, 
So men stamp evils ; they can circumscribe. 



— 14 — 

But from extinction must leave them exempt; 

In realms of nature there avails no bribe, 

And overthrov/ were useless to attempt; 

Blind blessings they, which dovetail with the morn 

And eventide, exacting man's deep thought; 

Enfranchised guile, from Hesper's bosom torn. 

By great intelligence distinctly wrought; 

If we can feel whence men their trend derive 

Of solemn worth, authority and weight, 

That they, unbiased agents, live and thrive 

In reason's course, detached from morbid hate 

Or mongrel lie, then what of hate or lie 

May be accouched, repeated lip by lip. 

Lone hearts will not grow weary to defy 

Until broad truth assail the throttling quip. 

Manghetlo 

Strange birth of words, and yet not new but old; 
Ahura-Mazda reigns in spheres of right, — 
This is an ancient story plainly told, — 
Opposed by Angro-Mainyus' wronging might ; 
Within the realms twixt heaven and the earth 
Their forces clash; but they v/ill not abide 
Who of contention never want a dearth ; 
Hence yictory alights on neither side; 
The reasons of the struggle, clash and fight? 
They are assigned to elemental change : 
Day follows day, but intervening night 
Proclaims its share within the boundless range; 
Through all cosmogony the cohorts speak, 
And forge their chains for evanescent time; 
Where life and death have striven, there the bleak 
And melancholy wastes yield life sublime; 
The stagnant world, in shedding its attaint, 
Strikes, therefor, tunes of harmony in all ; 
Life in decay still lives in cold restraint, 
And it must rise anew through every fall ; 
It is the law, the law's revolving wage. 
That losses come, through losses living gains ; 
All war must lead unto the dormant stage, 
And gather strength upon its feuds and pains. 

Muspah 

Graces of the lips impart 
Pureness of the human heart ; 
Grounded, too, is truth forever, 
And its advocate's endeavor; 



_ 15 — 



You have retained some ancient tale, 
Though youth's revulsion does prevail, 
And it is well ; but tell me, friend. 
How Greece and Rome sunk to their end. 

Manghetto 

How they did sink, how end a long career, 
I do not know ; thus is their fate deplored : 
Rome's mighty hand had many realms to steer, . 
Whose wealth she sucked till she herself was gored ; 
The few were rich, the many stript and poor; 
The first corrupt, ambitious, full of guile; 
The last opprest, deceived and fed on lure ; 
Then unchaste Rome decayed, drunk with a smile. 
And moral scales hung low; the lion-paws 
Of fate wrecked all, save titles to her name; 
Posterity received some pandects, laws 
And manuscripts, her monuments of fame ; 
And Greece? She also had her regal day: 
Where rich and poor, the foolish and the wise, 
Persist to dwell apart in false array, 
They fall like Greece, like Rome, no more to rise. 

Muspah 

These old domains, with records scarce erased. 
Have lighted centuries since their decline ; 
Their past is still alive, and, undebased. 
Will always prove an intellectual mine. 
But not long since occasion's circumstance 
Brouo-ht me to walk on some lone city street ; 
I hastened on, but found a clogged advance 
Where they in Aphrodite's temple meet ; 
Scarce would I trust my eyes, for what I saw 
Was past description strange upon our soil :— 
If virtue still be true as is her law. 
Whence drew this Goddess all her temple s spoil !— 
Scarce would I trust my ears, which overheard 
Strange revels, song and music, wrought with care , 
The place seemed haunted, although pleasure-gird. 
With sorrows drowned in oceans of despair. 
Since then much better fits the doubted tale 
That one, an immigrant at Plymouth Kock, 
In secret signs made the request by mail 
That Venus be brought o'er robed m a frock ; 
Now none may know how she an entrance gamed. 
Nor nationalities what cleared the way; 
But she is here ; will passions unrestrained 
Crown her as queen of life, death, night and day .' 



— 16 — 

Manghetto 

If rumor be confirmed, nor eye nor ear 
Escapes perverseness round about us here; 
It augurs ill for decent moral tone 
In daily life. Joys throug-h an awful groan, 
In pithy fonns of agony and pain, 
Fi'om nerve-racked body switch upon the brain; 
And progress is reversed where virtue's fall 
Binds man to false environs that enthrall 
His visage, which, all fancy-decked, can see 
No aftermath to all the whirling glee; 
This fault, and some unuttered, still indites 
The postern forms of Aphrodite's rites ; 
Nor dare folk deem them of religious force, 
From which laws secular proclaim divorce. 
Ah! Pity points out festering sores, and where 
Death's palor lurks spread round the hectic glare; 
And bodies marked which stagger to their doom ; 
Poor, finite men ! Their individual gloom 
Foreshadows birdnests come to rotten state, 
Which man's deceitful pride will not abate. 

Muspah 

Abiding streng-th dwells with earth's cavalcade 
In units which renounce no lover's share; 
Yet mere perception ventures not on raid 
With bold command: Adulterers beware! 
And since both men and women play the harp 
With virtue's strings, still resonant and true. 
Not ethic's friends midst social feuds will carp 
About life's harmonies which should ensue ; 
Love rules the world, but, craving for a mate. 
It sometimes blindly rushes for its spoil ; 
Imprudent impulse is reversed by fate; 
But love well-mated minds not sorrovN''s toil ; 
A bitter struggle means it to withstand 
Temptations, which, in passion's finery clad. 
Delight the eye, caress the faltering hand. 
And pour the wine till brain is feverous-mad ; 
A roused-up public conscience I would deem 
The safer source to pull the Goddess down; 
With purer life in contrast, her esteem 
Must vanish from her temple and the town. 
And Plutus too, whose gorgeous, golden shrine 
Brings hundreds to their knees to praise and pray,. 
Should now be banished ; public needs define 
Such sentence of the present judginent-day. 



— 17 — 

Manghetto 

This troubled plane bids every age to till 
According to its strength and mental skill. 

Muspah 

Quite different thoughts now summons my concern, 
And I, with your pemiission, will proceed 
To delve into their kernel and the urn 
Whence something new may leap into the lead ; • 

What have we here? The wheel of fortune, friend, 
Wheve men rise from the dead with living word, 
Who with enacting messages amend 
The judgment which contemporaries heard. 

Manghetto 

These things are interesting, and combine, 
I judge, the common with the super-plane; 
Here^visdom hides as wealth in ocean's brine, 
And fortune's rod conceals belief and stain. 

Muspah 

The booth is open ; you may access gain 
To all its parts and secrets they conceal; 
I pray you therefor thence to ascertain 
The hidden gist and it to me reveal. 

(Manghetto enters the booth of the wheel of for- 
tune, and Muspah settles himself on a chair and in- 
dulges in musing.) 

Muspah 

Shall mornings perish, evenings fail. 
The clouds and winds surcease to wail, 
Because some cruel heart does thirst 
For strength destructive these to burst ! 
Ah man ! Ah man ! What agony 
Lies every day in wait for thee ! 
His feeble joy, his zithern-blast. 
In pestilential gloom is cast; 
And when contempt and wrath arise, 
His burning brain is foolish wise; 
A charioteer, he cannot reap 
The golden nuggets of the deep; 
And being fed on bread of tears, 
No harvests cut his qualms and fears; 
His anger rises up like smoke 



— 18 — 

From languid slumbers just awoke; 

In ruined strongholds of belief 

His days without reproach are brief; 

Dark shadows gather where once hope 

Filled valleys and the mountain slope; 

When will he walk in virtuous path; 

When not spill blood in murderous wrath; 

When wipe out deeds which grieve him sore, 

And act in kindness evermore; 

When into blessings turn a curse, 

And when his neighbor's joys rehearse? 

In fame and fortune drawing nigh 

Mere semblances of substance lie; 

Hope, the propeller of his life, 

Counts trophies won in bitter strife ; 

The phantoms round him fill his dreams, 

And take from earth their skybound beams. 

And yet! Dear me! What is there here. 

In realms of earth and star-lid sphere. 

That would compare with him, with man, 

Long glory-crowned in heaven's plan? 

The watchmen deem man's earnest goal 

To be the saving of his soul, 

Than whom no hell in torturing rage 

Impales in service without wage; 

The minds that master strength and will 

Man's short abode with blessings fill; 

And nature's force in cryptic thrall 

Through earth and sky obeys his call; 

The efforts of his brain and brawn 

With noble fruitage gi-eet the dawn; 

Blest is his toil whereof the core 

Heals inner and external war ; 

What if abundance whet his greed. 

If he his starving brother feed. 

And i-ender him in sore distress 

To cover up his nakedness! 

What if he perish! O'er his tomb 

Glad progeny his name illume ; 

Aye, aye, in all creation's scheme 

Poor, mortal man is still supreme; 

The best of clay which nature wrought 

Is he with reasoning bend of thought. 

Manghetto (re-entering.) 

What sorcery, I ask, dwells in these boards. 
What chaiTn or magic in the wheels which spin 



— 19 — 

Round, round, and round as if enchantment's hordes 

Had vowed that time's omissions should beg-in? 

A vivid brilliancy, with colors spread, 

Has far surpassed what eye e'er saw before ; 

A herald's voice unto a trumpet fed 

Made leg-ions of the dead yield buried lore ; 

With fable's deftest hand percipient sound 

Wrapt thing's remote; and necromancy's shield 

For life and vigor bridged the fissured ground 

Till it collapsed upon a barren field; 

With great rapidity scene after scene 

With great rapidity to melt again in night 

Whence it had come; and what its aspects mean 

The herald voiced who basked within the sight. 

Muspah 

Be but at ease, Manghetto, be at ease ; 
Pray, let no fancy-flights mount to control ; 
Or fertile mind endeavor to appease 
In vain imaginings its stalking role. 

Manghetto 

Not fancy's brood has found an easy nest 
When thus I speak of what I saw and heard ; 
Not vain imaginings my head infest, 
But true portrayal lives within my word. 

Muspah 

Ah, very well! Then let me hear your tale; 
What you have gathered let it be conveyed 
From memory's bourne ; and every truth prevail 
Until its pictures into shadows fade; 
Though buoyed with expectations, from within 
I feel the world shape its accustomed lines : 
On hallowed ears fall sounds of curdling din, 
And eyes unbandaged gaze on fruitful vines; 
Perchance it is not substance that attracts, 
But newness of some gestures, grace and voice. 
And a reward portrayed in points and facts 
Wherein sub-conscious order finds its choice. 

Manghetto 

I shall not obligate myself to give 
High colored renderings of my account ; 
Green never can be blue, nor scholars live 
Who may unchallenged clog life's bubbling fount. 



— 20 — 

Muspah 

Precisely so. We know a faithful steed, 
When given rein, will oftimes duly speed 
Unto its crib; so even thought's debate 
May hearken back its mysteries to relate. 

Manghetto 

I saw great darkness lift and roll away 
From Europe's shores, as like a misty spray. 
Pierced by the sun, peii'orce evaporates ; 
Men long in ignorance bred stood at the gates, 
And held the priest in reverence at whose hand 
All kingcraft lay secure to rule the land; 
The new world's wealth then brought its glittering fame 
From far Peru and Mexico; there came 
Uncounted bars of silver and of gold. 
Which turned old thrones and lands from stagnant mold ; 
And after they had fallen on the loot, 
Rieligion tore the countries with dispute; 
The Hansa league became a prey of war, 
While marts of earth were beckoning from afar; 
The untaught masses were benumbed with dread 
By numerous clergy ; hell or heaven-led, 
From tribute, tithe and tax they found no rest. 
And government did all their bounds infest; 
Man's intellect but dimly did portray 
The hope and blessings of a better day ; 
The highways held the brigand and his kind. 
Who plundered all and scarce left trace behind ; 
Men's frail existence was beset with ill. 
And earth and heavens did but fear instill ; 
Beside proud Spain grew Portugal apace; 
The Dutch and Swedes spread canvass to the gale; 
And England rose to lead the mighty race, 
And marked the whole world's oceans with her sail. 

Muspah 

But since mankind at some time thrust aside 
Such heavy burdens, when did they bestride 
These awful cycles ? 

Manghetto 

When this continent 

Became the refuge of great discontent, 
Brewing too long, and it attracted those 



— 21 — 

Who had for conscience sake escaped the throes 
Of Europe's troubled lands, the peace to seek 
Which was denied to them or strong- or weak ; 
The pilgrims though, who old traditions fled. 
Came not to find, nor found a downy bed 
Of native roll to please the roaming eye; 
But life held hope to battle for and die ; 
High dispensation urged no cause the more : 
The men who came wild regions did explore 
And made their settlements ; those hither drawn 
Had frontier requisites of brain and brawn; 
The Britisher, the German, Frenchman, Swede 
And Dutchman came; and time's devouring speed 
Encompassed it that they together tossed 
And mingled each were to the other lost. 

The tasks before them claimed the weary toil 

Of husbandmen depending on the soil 

To live, unless they also sought the chase ; 

To wrest from wildness a sure dwelling place 

Required earnestness ; their proper course, 

With God's own fear, led them, by mighty force 

Through difficulties or the fierce affray 

Which sometimes daily at the border lay; 

Escaped from thralldom on the other side, 

They here essayed in freedom to abide, 

And the auspicious beacons to uprear 

Which shed their splendid lustre far and near ; 

They step by step in consciousness of strength 

With assiduity climbed heights at length 

Where steady hearts could spread the cheer of man, 

And march along with progress in the van ; 

All ostentation was bereft of waste, 

For simple wants, known but to simple taste, 

Of that indulgence are quite innocent 

Which luxury is weak to circumvent. 

Muspah 

And did remembered hardships from abroad 
Make of acerbity a tempered rod ? 

Manghetto 

Their moral worth shone like a brilliant star 
Until transfixed by toleration's bar; 
Strange tempests roared, but virtue's quickening song 
Filled up the intermissions of their wrong ; 
At festivals long pent-up feeling broke 



22 

In gaity ; and its pursuit bespoke 
Emerging change of many irksome ways 
That were bequeathed to them in bygone days ; 
So it went on until their mental skill 
Expanded, and their faculties and will 
Perceived the harmonies to be explored 
In wisdom's realm, and joy and sweet accord. 

Muspah 

And seemed they truly happy; full of cheer; 
Did they reward the issues sprung from fear 
With Christian charity, and in their hearts 
Indulge no covet for what justice parts? 
And were they brave to love their fireside; 
And women true? And in their onward stride, 
Would they prepare for manhood's injured cause, 
And virtue's halls bereave of wanton gauze? 

Manghetto 

As progress is important to the state, 
And virtue's conquest pleasant to relate, 
So be it said, to wage life's battles they 
With brave demeanor marshalled their array. 

Muspah 

And did their courts interpret all the law 
Impartially ? And was the feathered claw 
Of privilege unknown to overleap 
And seize the fruits which others toiled to reap? 
Did liberty approve the magistrate. 
And -civil life all evil deeds berate ? 
Were rights of property safe in the land. 
And spurs and boots deprived of all command? 

Manghetto 

No special privilege could long impede 
Their high endeavors ; nor the sordid greed 
Of some prerogative seize all the soil, 
Though royal gi-ant conceded it as spoil; 
The people ruled, and with their voice besought 
What but in noble manhood can be wrought; 
And when the king had trampled on their rights 
They rebelled ; and as the breeze alights 
From morning's verdure of the freshened field, 
Long drooping in a loathsome stagnancy, 



— 23 — 

They did through storms of devastation wield 

The sword and pen, twin-fiat of the free ; 

The contest gained, they edifice upreared 

Whenceissued blasts which kings learned to be feared; 

And from among themselves to rule chose one 

Who brought them victory : George Washington ; 

This soldier-statesman in declining age 

Gave them this message which bespeaks the sage : 

My country now, my country evermore! 

Though bold calumny emptied all her store 

Of poisonous fangs, the viper shall not die 

Unnaturally, but in the end comply 

With nature's law ; the soldier who will give 

All he can proffer— life— so there might live 

Within the halls of patriotic fame 

His kindred blood, his country and its name, 

Shall, though he perish, suffer the renown 

Of righteous valor to be written down 

As everlasting glory ; not a king, 

Or earthly potentate can blessings wring 

From ribald circumstance as those who dare 

Their sovereign will relentless to prepare 

For all contingencies ; equality. 

Ah ! may it ever but the standard be. 

Whereby to gauge the conduct and the spoil 

Of those in station and of those who toil ; 

And liberty, for which we strove in pain, 

May it not perish, or become as vain 

As tyranny herself, and render hope 

A thing elusive, and unfit to cope 

With problems that wind round the destiny 

Of noble people ; may all hear and see 

That which is good, and every good impart 

In peace and war, as duly prompts the heart. 

Muspah 

Did they give heed to what this patriarch 
Said unto them, or fortwith but embark 
Upon a course which strangled the intent 
Of goodly counsel ? 

Manghetto 

His experience blent 
With axiomatic certainties could not 
Fail of its fruitage in the years begot 
That followed him ; and in great numbers came 
The men of understanding whom his fame 



— 24 — 

Served as an heritance, and ^^•ho took pride 

To leave the country of their own beside. 

New paths were cleared; the wilderness subdued; 

And other tasks of consequence ensued; 

And at the time when the convulsive roar 

Of internecine strife gnawed at the core 

Of human slavery, a giant hand 

Forever swept the issue from the land ; 

Nor was there lack of strong, courageous men 

Who sacrificed themselves to rear again 

The weakened sti'ucture; and its towers bear 

Incentive emblems unto which compare 

None that the world has evei- known before 

In all its records writ of peace or war. 

Muspah 

The people, sprung from every race of earth, 
Bore infusorial marks of native birth; 
They know their country and its history; 
And visions of its future destiny 
Reveal to them the prophecy of hope, 
First to themselves, and then, as years elope, 
Unto the world ; as like a swishing- stream 
With panting eddies is the blasted dream 
Of grounded peace ; and yet the storm and stress 
Of pressing matters may with rapidness 
Lead to the calm, complacent terms of rest, 
Which even warriors crave with heavy breast ; 
But say, have not their faults been minimized ; 
Did they not leave some wounds uncicatrized? - 

Manghetto 

No need to lessen or to overdraw 
The circumambient toll of nature's law. 
And all its charms, the which with vivid sight, 
But being art, occasioned me delight; 
And though the things unmentioned could impart 
Some minor faults, may sti'ength of noble heart, 
Shown in the acts and conduct of the host, 
Count as the foremost item of their boast. 

Muspah 

Indeed, it were small recompense to trace 
Ignoble usufruct to honored deed; 
Magnanimous, men blink at the embrace 
Of spread embelishments beyond all need ; 
Those who are worthy of life's impost high, 



— 25 — 

And lean on liberty as something dear, 

Pursue a course that shudders at a lie, 

But within bounds forbear to interfere; 

The disregard of honor, worth and fame, 

Of charity, compassion, tenderness. 

And mercy lures an oi'ifice of shame 

To share with groans man's buixlen of distress: 

Some without cause will cast theii- ideals off, 

And midst the dregs of perfidy attain 

To piggish nature, bounding to their trough, 

Fi'om which they feed with squealing sounds of pain; 

And since the multitudes have grown and grow, 

Their diverse natures cackle not the same ; 

The tongues are busy, but not wisdom's glow 

Has issued from its caves with winging flame. 

Manghetto 

Yet I behold the building-time wherein 
A trail is blazed that future decades win 
Possessive rights; and those whom destiny 
Ordained to leave a heritage to me. 
Claim homage for their praise-deserving feat, 
Though they laid down their work still incomplete; 
I now no longer may disdain the past ; 
The things to mind's own crevices made fast 
Claim due regard; in memory lodge the deeds 
Which bow to my command and serve my needs; 
Vast sti-eams of good may issue from its fount; 
And j'or the future's heaving to account 
A surfeit, which no present straits consume. 
Will flow between, and build earth's endless tomb; 
We may receive the records of the dead 
For useful purpose, and be henceforth led 
By wisest counsel, and in turn achieve 
Great deeds which we may to the future leave ; 
To wider range has the perspective grown. 
And storms which yesterday their ruin spread. 
To-day in majesty of cloudless tone. 
Paint the horizon's templed vault with red. 

Muspah 

So now you'll say faiewell to foiTner friends, 
And woo the sun-squints near the shadow-ends. 
As like the butterfly, not long emeiged. 
With colored wings kept duly ether-purged; 
But mortal man is never error-proof. 
And darkness still abides beneath his roof; 



— 26 — 

All abj^ss yaNMis to speed him in his fall. 

Unless he fathom the eternal call ; 

Wise man is he whom semblance cannot blind, 

And who can pierce the mists that wrap the mind; 

Though great perversion turn the world amiss, 

His ways lead but to truth and hoarded bliss. 

Maiighetto 

I shall indulge such mei'iy twinkling thought 
As is perchance in transient echoes caught 
Which fancy's mood brings me to entertain; 
Its poignant worth time will itself explain; 
The credit for incentive, which is yours. 
Must oft recur as long as life endures; 
And if it be my lot to fail in spite. 
May this idea be my fixed delight; 
And now I must take leave; our country's hope 
Remains secure; its effervescent scope 
Attracts the spirits who, as trusty men, 
Place fallen idols in their niche again. 

Muspah 

If I have aught accomplished twixt us twain, 
The pregnant knowledge thereof joins the train 
Of shining symbols blazoned on a shield 
Where borrowed tints disturb no living field ; 
The blistered thought falls into turgid pool ; 
The frozen wheat shrinks into bloated chaff ; 
True manhood chooses lightning for its staff, 
And writes no homily for quack or fool. 

Manghetto 

Our friendship is not vain ; the autumn days 
Reverberate its pleasant little lays ; 
The scattered webs weave taut the mystic spell, 
And tie the chords secure. So now farewell. 

(Exit Manghetto) 

Muspah 

His form is gone ; the vestment of the soul 
Lacks never strength to leave its trace behind; 
The hills of thought, like mounts of plowing mole. 
Crowd to the surface out of compact mind; 
From isolation's grim and silent bower 
May issue sacred visions of retreat; 
No chorus joins my consecrative hour, 
And heart-throbs emanate in perfect beat ; 



— 27 — 

With service unto man, to one and all 
The host of pilgrims who on weary way 
Emaciated lie in earthly thi'all, 
Are daggers sheathed which otherwise would slay; 
1 know the bonds which hold the human race; 
The cause which brings the How of bloody gore; 
Then, if I lift one strand, by right of grace. 
One pound of weight, it will secui'e my lore; 
I thereby seek not praise, for it is bare; 
But that example may be proof of worth, 
Small recognition would absolve despair. 
And ease my conscious exit from this earth. 
(Exit Muspah) 



ACT II. 

George 

Then tell me how these visions came; 
Were they companions of the flame 
Whose subtle, crawling emblems, give 
To flitting forms their strength to live ? 

Herman 

Ah, friend! Old scenes would cai-ry me 
Round in the cii'cle of delights 
Which hold youth's golden canopy 
In firm embrace o'er distant heights, 
Those regions of gay, airy flights 
Where wings of fancy's liberty 
Spread canvass-wide, and lofty mites 
Are given birth for fruits to be. 

There came a doubt if human mind 
Gain riches from the impress high, 
By nature scattered or combined, 
Or that the heart its gist espy ; 
For scores I found in passers by 
Who but observed a wrinkled rind, 
And scarce a one whose mental eye 
Perceived the holy things enshrined. 

Life's relish must lie with the past, 

So ran the trend of coursing thought; 

And an abiding counter-blast 

Swept round what early days had taught; 



— 28 — 

Some weary years the knowledge wrought 
That disappointment will be cast 
On simple dreams, if they are brought 
To mingle where life runneth fast. 

, George 

Aha I And when you were aroused. 
Had not illusion's verdure fled 
To banishment, or was it housed 
With brighter spectre-scenes instead? 

Herman 

Much more remained; a tale and token 
Of deeds wrapt up with breathing life ; 
Hopes still unquenched and left unspoken 
Touched tattered shreds of erstwhile strife; 
I gathered much, quite unexpected, 
Along the highways, and detected 
More on the hillsides farther off; 
I learned from rosebuds of the season. 
Sometimes unnoticed, that no treason 
Is laid on him who deigns to scoff 
Their sweetest fragrance; I found flitting 
Fresh, perfumed waves upon the night, 
Where odors failed to seem befitting 
The ruins heaped in waste and blight; 
Where fir and cedar trees are pining 
To reach the realms where Gods reside, 
And nature's soul, from strife reclining, 
Has reared its pillars for a guide. 
Thence was I led ; and without guile. 
All cloud-encompassed Oregon 
Met winter-zephyrs with a smile 
And, raptured, sometimes hailed the sun. 

George 

You saw the landscape in attire 
Of winter's brightness; and the eye 
Smooth featured days found to admire, 
While cunning footsteps blessed the sky; 
May heaven hold the stranger dear 
When blustering currents leave their lair! 
No human hand can interfere 
With earth's owti tantalizing blare. 



— 29 — 

Herman 

My tlioughts embraced the shimmering goal 
Whei'e man's good will and fervent heart 
Builds purposes that will unroll 
Plain duties, beauties and its art; 
Not cravings which depict the glutton, 
Whose weak desires have no base, 
Led onslaught upon beef and mutton 
To swell a lamentable face; 
Ambition's attributes were cleaving 
Unto the counti-y's flow and heat; 
Its life-blood bubbled to the heaving 
Beyond the ordinary beat; 
Inten-ogating hills and mountains 
Ranged with their breastworks on the slope 
Where countless, living little fountains 
Found fruitful being; and the scope 
Of brooklets lay in rolling stream, 
Whose long corroding force has cleft 
A path unto the ocean's gleam, 
Which left indentured shores bereft; 
Here thrive the conifers, whose spreading, 
Far-stretching limbs shade herbs and gTass; 
Where nature holds a constant wedding, 
An everlasting, solemn mass; 
And throughout all the many valleys 
Have laurel, elm, the ash and oak, 
And diverse shrubs reared sturdy galleys 
Since time's recording dawn first broke; 
The blood and dust of this arena 
Clings yet to trailing scabbard's points; 
But prostrate lies each dread hyena 
With glossy eyes and stiffened joints. 



George 

Strange is indeed the tale which you relate ; 
Its weird allusions turn me reprobate ; 
Come now kind spirits, foster ye my lore; 
Weave tiny secrets unwoven before; 
Come ye, invisible hosts of the air. 
Turn me caressingly over to care ; 
Bless me with truthfulness, honesty's child, 
And virtue, and character undefiled. 

(Exit) 



— 30 — 

Herman 

A sentimental fool is he; 
Frail as the naked night ; 
And nothing plain can plainer be 
Than sentimental blight. 

(Exit) 

(Two laboring men enter) 
1st laborer 

What are these men who, each upon his way 
With bowing head, feed melancholy's fray? 
Indeed, if my poor judgment be a guide, 
They're much alike as they walk side by side. 

2nd laborer 

I understand they are both learned men 
Who stroll for exercise through wood and glen; 
Yet have I doubts of their sufficient worth 
To lift one cry of agony on earth. 
Hard work and burdens fall on men who are. 
Much like us two, hurled 'neath the passing car; 
Indeed I can so testify in truth : 
The ideals which ambition spun in youth 
Placed sacrifice on altars made of gold, 
But inquisition its last seizure tolled. 

1st laborer 

It seems to me much learning will allow 
Cheap traffic in the battles wrought of mind ; 
For pitted wits stamp wrinkles on the brow 
Of gray-haired youths, and leave their scars behind. 

2nd laborer 

Aye, and we all find the unbounded strife 
But dull renditions of a battle-hymn. 
Whose blind illusions span the gaps of life 
With buttressed bridges till the eyes be dim; 
Once I was driven, 'twas in winter time. 
As flies the crow down south two thousand miles, 
To spend my empty days in milder clime. 
Where frosty nights destroy no sunny smiles, 
Past gates and yards of wealthy men I trod, 
Past spacious mansions towering in the air. 
To points beyond where unincumbered sod 
Became my resting place, of pity bare; 



And then I asked how came I to be poor — 
Not in compare of learning — but in wealth 
Which rears for some men pedestals of lure, 
And finds me on the path of fear and stealth ; 
If wealth extends recipient hands of worth, 
And I am deemed a coward doomed to ill. 
Then may the Gods renew their fatal bii-th, 
And justice grind her sword whereby to kill. 

1st laborer 

Well, friend, forget these burdens of the past 
As spices which deceptive odors yield; 
Our present chance and future may be cast 
Where hope erects high portals in the field; 
Here is Manghetto's land which we may clear 
For liberal pay ; the labor we bestow 
In burning tolls cheats troubles which appear, 
And dearer forms rise from the depths below. 

2nd laborer 

You are so charged with hope as if a coil 
With current flow had spread to every side; 
The only hope I have is dreary toil 
Wherein more bitter fruits than sweet abide ; 
Misfortune's heavy hand can crush no more 
Than bloated wealth whose ostentation hath 
Its thousand followers which drag and pour 
More dregs into the cauldron born of wrath ; 
These acrid men are doubtless running mad 
With cheap success gained in a thievish game ; 
Their love of humankind is all too sad, 
And with hypocracy they tag their name. 

1st laborer 

These withering thoughts will only serve to keep 
Us from the tasks which we must yet fulfill: 
We lack endowment to upset the deep 
Mysterious surfeit which the times instill ; 
A providence which has so kindly brought 
All human entities to being's state, 
Demands enlightened labor to be wrought 
By busy hands as needs may indicate; 
So why toi-ment your spirit with a growl 
Of much unnatural hate towai'd one and all ? 
A luckless misery should not befoul 
The brood of pantings in a purpled stall. 



— 32 — 

2nd laborer 

Injustice, though it mount a thousand thrones, 
Brings teeming misery and human ill ; 
Why should I toil while round me hover drones 
Which swallow all the profits of my skill? 
I roll no stone into another's way, 
But quite instead with charity endow 
The scene so dark ; and yet no piercing ray 
Will lift the brambled pressure from my brow. 

1st laborer 

From nature's dull monotony we take 
The tangled forms whereof there is no need, 
And in bestowal of much labor break 
The stubborn sod for plants and virgin seed; 
This worthy occupation I pursue 
With thoughtful pleasure ; nor will doubts arise 
That tendencies, which whimsy may construe, 
Are vanquished ere aspiring to be wise ; 
So let us start with clearing on the side 
Where brush is thickest ; where the dogwoods spread 
Their clustered arrogance ; and where the wide, 
Broad, rugged oaks quake with a whispering dread. 

2nd laborer 

Well, then to work ; some months must pass away 
Before sweet forms will grace this plot of ground; 
Though that concerns not us, our short survey 
Lays flattermg future captive, to be bound 
To rain and sunshine and to nursing care, 
When leaping life of nature vnW unfold 
Her dormant empire, leaving death no share. 
And with an echoing thrill carve new from old. 

(Exeunt) 

(Manghetto and Clara enter) 

Manghetto 

Here lies the tract upon the crested height, 
Where eyes may sweep the glories all around, 
And rest upon the emblems of delight 
Which stretch beyond the ken of human sound; 
The city lies beneath our very feet. 
And in its outlines to the south and north, 
And to the east, while seeming incomplete. 
Yet shows distinctly all its bounded worth ; 



I've sent some men up here to clear the land 

Of brush and ferns and stumps which still remain 

These fir and dogwoods will be left to stand. 

So they be linked to beauty's golden chain, 

Which they will start according to design, 

And in pursuance of a patterned plan, 

Long since devised, the which I still incline 

To push to full completion if I can ; 

If you approve thereof you may advise 

With heartfelt counsel how this highland site. 

In your esthetic tastes, could w^ear disguise 

Of beauty sparkling like the starry night. 

Clara 

Oh, Pincet, I rejoice, and yet deplore 
That you invoke my judgment, which indeed 
Was never exercised in things before 
Of w'eighty import drawn from human need; 
Where you have planned, my fancy can perceive 
A thoroughness quite ample in intent, 
And bound to please; I therefor do believe 
I should concur and not indulge dissent; 
But Pincet, if you really love me, dear. 
Why tender burdens which so contravene 
The fateful tale you whispered in my ear 
When sigh on sigh was twined with love unseen? 

Manghetto 

I dearly love you, Clara, which I swear 
By yonder Hood whose snow fields pierce the sky; 
Aye, and St. Helens whose majestic glare 
Surmounts the heights whei'e fleecy clouds go by; 
Those towers of the eailh shall witness be 
Of heart-throbs which so feebly I express. 
The rushing pulse, the keenest sense of glee. 
Are but pale brothers to my love's excess 

Clara 

Swear not by yonder mountains on whose peak 
Perpetual snow has piled its variant form; 
'Tis but a chilly message which they speaK, 
With grim direction to the howling storm; 
Do they not send the windblasts to the town 
Which sometimes cut us rudely to the bone? 
Love were ensnared that Imgers in the frown 
Of their bald grandeur reared on heaps of stone. 



— 34 — 

Manghetto 

But yonder mountains constitute the source 
Whence waters in thpi. ^v^, sttil pureness spring, 
Whose thousand parts take their meandering couise 
Through glen and meadow where the thrushes sing 
Their amorous love-songs 'mid the calm and rest 
Of God's own handiwoi'k ; yon glistening dome 
Caressingly draws sucklings to its breast, 
While shadows linger in its silent home; 
That mountain chain whose solid strenghth we see 
Athwart the line that tilts the eastern sky, 
Is emblematical of love to me 
Which cannot languish, aye and never die; 
Its careless freedom stirs within the mind 
The fervent wish that softest chords be bound 
To naught of care, and that our friendship bind 
A sweet refrain with every trembling sound ; 
And as the westwinds carry in their sweep 
The soft chinooks which kiss the crusted waste 
And icy cheeks, until the mellowed heap 
Lets mimic waterfalls spurt down in haste, 
So shall my love bring its chinooks to you. 
Forever fanning with the softest breath 
The spark divine whose harmony is true. 
Till being's consciousness depart in death. 

Clara 

Oh, Pincet, dear, as heaven's dome is blue, 
I wish that all your touching, tender words 
Remained as undisturbed; and that I knew 
Not change of seasons which the passing birds 
Announce in wildest flight up in the air; 
But since they come to never long remain 
In any place, though kind and secret lair 
Secure them freedom which they would obtain, 
Love may be like them, all untied to place, 
And often migrate with the tidal flow 
Of ruling passion, till it banish grace 
From many circles of its fervent glow; 
I sometimes fancy I could well believe 
That things were different; but the senses fail 
To so ordain love's order of leprieve 
That purest joy have nothing to bewail. 

Manghetto 

But there is more than fancy's simple brood 
In kindled love; it is a living flame 
That bars perverted egress of a mood 



— 35 — 

Of scurrile taint, and selfishness and shame ; 
It greets the smiling angler at the brook 
Whose deep, bewildering, rural ectasy 
Knows only joy, though luckless labor took 
But sparing morsels for expectant glee ; 
Keen is its thrill ; its patience is benign ; 
And it will bend like limber rod will bend 
Beneath the strain that draws upon the Ime 
When finny tribes are nibling at its end ; 
It knows not mildew, or the blighting pest 
Whose ravage finds no limit while its flees 
From field to field ; but glories in the test 
Of calm felicity at sacred ease. 

Clara 

Oh, Pincet, how I love to hear you speak 
Of these unmeasured things, wherein belief 
Must lose all benediction of the meek,_ 
And kindled rapture pinion all but grief. 

Wlanghetto 

My wash is, Clara, that encumbering grief ^ 
Remain a stranger where we shall abide; 
For it is well that silence crown this chief 
Whose calm behavior has a beckoning stride; 
A picture of great beauty has held sway 
For some time past within me, w^hich nor shape 
Nor sparkling luster lacks of brightest day, 
Or night illumined by refulgent tape ; 
The scenes I saw occurred upon the spot 
Where we now stand; and with a prudent mmd 
I turned adorning future on the lot, 
And all accoutrements, to lift the grmd 
Of dailv chores; the dwelling had no gild 
By affectation conjured up from choice; 
But large convenience its dimensions filled. 
And blissful medleys charged the human voice; 
You were the queen who reigned withm its sphere, 
And it became a home, safe and secure, 
A landlocked haven that forbiddeth fear. 
And holding only aims which shall endure. 

.Clara 

I shall be queen, queen of this dwelling place, 
Which you have thought to build upon this gi'ound ; 
And queen within your heart by that strange grace 



— 36 — 

Which only unity through love has found; 
Since all is well, and you are good and kind, 
And it affords great pleasure but to cling 
To your strong arm, a tender love will find 
Its added measures tutored on the wing 
Of soaring flight. 

Manghetto 

But not to fly away 
To points which lie beyond our care and reach; 
But to remain in ideals whose array 
Can proudly boast of armor without breach; 
And when exacting time flits o'er the goal 
By promises appointed, then the fruit 
Of welded friendship shall return the toll 
Which it demands long ere this voice be mute. 
You are my queen, my darling, in whose eyes 
I find the light, and inspiration's source 
Of understanding, which, when folly dies, 
Imparts the beam to overthrow remorse; 
And since I think it right that you receive 
In your own name the title to this land, 
I've made a deed with warranties, which leave 
Delivery and seizin in your hand; 
Now, should this token of remembrance gain 
Your glad approval, I shall be repaid. 
Since this procurement thereto may attain, 
If happiness adoi'n my loving maid. 

Clara 

Oh, dearest, that in words I could impart 
What an unmeaning tongue shall leave unsaid, 
Though which dwells in the I'ecess of the heart, 
Where deeper purpose crowns the fountain-head; 
The mere illusive figures of the day, 
And passing incidents dissolve in air 
Like thought's own skeletons whose gross decay 
Writes meanings whereto muteness must compare; 
But deeply conscious of the rendered gift 
That came unasked, I see therein command 
Of pleasant duties, which may rise and shift 
As grow our favoring moods to understand. 

Manghetto 

To understand, that is the gist, the core, 
That keeps the troubled cell-work of the brain 
Awake upon the ramparts, when the I'oar 



— 37 — 

Of thought's exchange impounds its brood of pain; 

Ah, Chira, let the sun shine while it may, 

And heavens sing- a song of silent praise; 

Let happy bliss no longer brook delay 

In fixed withdrawal from the public gaze; 

And in those hours, if come they must and will, 

Which chance may drench in bitterness of soul, 

I shall but come to you, to you, until 

The cries of massive agonies unroll, 

Clara 

The sympathy which you may blindly crave, 
Should copious troubles threat to disembark, 
I shall anticipate, and as they rave, 
Repel them with my life. 

Manghetto 

This is the spark 
Which dictates that no cares shall master me, 
Or that upheavals overcome the plan 
I have devised, or that their purpose be. 
Through good or ill, a bar to striving man; 
But if the fickle car of chance shall roll 
Down to the burial ground of all the past. 
Then may its maw be filled, and render toll 
To deathless shades in their eternal' cast; 
But life need ne'er be gloomy, for the night. 
Though it be drear and dark, dissolves in day. 
And through the restless clouds the piercing mite 
Of human harmony dispels dismay; 
All sorrow beckons love to be supreme 
Till the glad day of righteousness shall dawn; 
To-day's gi'ave duties are an itching theme, 
But fortune's ethics mold tomorrow's pawn. 

Clara 

But only they are rich who pawn no wealth 
Of fortune's ethics which we may behold 
Where pristine virtue still holds life and health 
In clear-eyed innocence for young and old. 

Manghetto 

Yea, virtue wears a crown; and by its mirth 
The golden sun-beams of a happy life 
Turn rolls of music loose upon the earth, 
And kindle laughter in the midst of strife. 



— 38 — 

Clara 

Strife shall not be a g'uest within this house, 
Nor currents clad in rough or balmy breeze 
Blow here from pools of business that my spouse, 
While harried by them, know not which to seize. 

(Exeunt) 

(Enter Dexter and Foley) 

Dexter 

It was no easy task which we agi'eed 
To so do that it be complete when done; 
But it is strange, its compensations breed 
A hanker now for frizzly bats of fun; 
It being my desire to purchase ground 
Where I can stretch my weary limbs when old, 
Good policy demands that it be found 
Before my funds are spent. 

Foley 

Well, I am told 
That, since the Lord has placed us here on earth. 
Which as our common mother is so fair. 
It was intended that the hour of birth 
Should render unto each his ample share; 
And though those teeth of greed her substance draw 
Which stand condemned forever at the bar 
Of human rights, time with a better law 
Will spread the light by justice borne afar; 
So all the trouble, all the agony, 
Which property lays at its owner's feet. 
Will be absolved in that fortuity 
Which only commonwealths can aptly meet. 

Dexter 

That justice reign on earth is a desire 
Which craving eagerness cannot fulfill, 
If its domain must trace her trailing fire 
To ardent dreamers who are standing still ; 
I am content if at the close of day 
Of my much worried life I may be free. 
In fullnes of my faculties, to say 
I sought the right as I the right could see; 
So little do I want and little need. 
That I can quietly abide the time 
Of the grim reaper's knock who, without heed. 
Brings flesh to naught and makes our death sublime. 



— 39 — 

Foley 

Why speak of death, which terminates the thread 
Of precious Hfe, as if some vulturous prey 
Could greedily embark to bring- its dead 
Where darkness will obscure the light of day? 
Nor are you old, nor never will be old, 
If you but think of time as on the wane 
To speed your purposed deeds which you behold 
As reflex of a crystalizing gain; 
The land which you can buy will lie removed 
From market centers, hence its products yield 
A heavy tax for transport; nor improved 
Are other tolls on things brought from the field; 
If weary toil perchance has coaxed the land 
To bring forth fruit according to your hope, 
A nipping frost may swell with heavy hand 
Unseasoned burdens, or, ere weeks elope, 
The tares have shown their stalks among the gi'ain; 
Destructive bugs may also add their share 
Of many evils, or perhaps the rain 
And hail destroy what there is left to spare; 
Canst then amid catastrophies arise 
To bid all havoc welcome, though it fling 
Your prostrate energies into a vise, 
Which fade like marrow squeezed from broken wing? 

Dexter 

I am aware that difficulties lie 
Upon the humblest path which we may tread; 
But little sparks of hope, long ere I die, 
May yet avert the want of daily bread; 
The glamor of the city is so false, 
It leaves my soul dejected but to see 
The minions living in its heartless walls 
Whose art of roguer}^ has high degree; 
The city's streets of asphalt or of stone 
Appeal not to the cold and haggard form 
That seeks for comfort when it walks alone 
Through countless furies of the pelting storm ; 
The agonies which lodge within the heart, 
The miseries that pall upon the soul, 
And strictures of the mind, all bear their part 
Of tears and glories in the city's goal ; 
When you and others, as the days grow short. 
Seek pleasure in its moisture-laden air. 
Then my own hearth in my own little fort 
Will yield a hundred comforts to one care; 



— 40 — 

But no man shall I envy if he find 

Within the city all his heart's desires, 

If only he will suffer me to bind 

The wounds she caused me through her searing fires; 

And in my mind's composure do I feel 

Anticipation's happiness as great 

As if its forms revolved upon a reel, 

And life was rounded off to being's state; 

I see myself in plodding work engaged 

From early break of day to dawn of night; 

And duty summons for the battle waged 

The laid-up strength of use and restive right; 

And I shall turn the ground with handy spade, 

And make it fine and mellow with a rake, 

Or hollow liffles needful to be made, 

Straight as a line is drawn twixt stake and stake, 

To plant the celery, onions and the beet, 

The cabbage, peas and beans, and Indian corn, 

A spinach plot and a potato sheet. 

And all around a hedge these to adorn ; 

With all my neighbors shall I live in peace. 

And sometimes heai- the converse of the young; 

Then, with the harvest finished, grant release 

To what of value may cling to the tongue. 

Foley 

Your scheme, I notice, has so long been planned 
And to maturity so swiftly strode, 
It were inopportune to speak of land 
As something of an undesired load; 
You dote thereon, whereas I fail to see 
Wherein it cures the status of the man 
Who only has his hands, and them not free. 
When poverty holds tightly to his van ; 
'Tis true the city's streets are cold and glum ; 
Their gray exterior holds no sympathy 
For friendless men who to its portals come 
With unripe thought whereto none will agree; 
Its broad and towering buildings hold for me 
No promise; and its life is so intense, 
It seems to move as like the seething sea. 
And countenance encroachment as defense; 
And yet there lies the heart, say what we will. 
Of the great commonwealth whose regions vast 
Must urge the arteries that will instill 
The leaping blood, and leave a mark at last; 
And though ambition have an even choice 



— 41 — 

In field and city, it has heretofore 
Chosen the city to indulge its voice, 
And added to her prestige with its lore. 

Dexter 

A band of shysters here seek out their prey ; 
Unwary victims fall within the range 
Of scrutinizing eyes, which shift and stray 
As if encumbered with a scaling mange ; 
And men of dark demeanor lodge therein ; 
The evil scoundrels who select the nig^ht 
For prowling visitations; and their kin 
The heartless scullion ; bound in sullen plight 
Are cruel schemers whose deceitful hand 
Will grab the substance of the poor and weak ; 
The dreadful villains, scourge of every land. 
Who strike with fangs of falsehood when they speak; 
The scavengers who hawk an empty shroud 
For timely lucre; and the mongrel tribe 
Of money changers, whom a trifling crowd 
Pays tribute with a spittle-woven bribe. 

Foley 

This is a hard indictment of the town 
By one whose life has long been the reverse 
Of lax alliance which with smile and frown, 
Midst flitting forms, pursues a silent hearse; 
Yet note this word : As long as wrong and right 
Alternate in the convoy pledged to man. 
So long will ambient faith rely on might, 
To crush repugnant usage of his plan. 
But what is this? Look! here upon the lane 
Come several men, young roysterers I trow; 
Shall we evade them, or, as now, remam 
Upon our way, and meet them with. a blow? 

Dexter 

No, let us parley with them to disclose 
Their journey's purpose which, if one of peace. 
May hold some benefits, and these dispose 
Of gi-inding conflicts that ere long they cease ; 
But if their aim be punic in design, 
A signal, word, or token may avail. 
To turn their course from paths of deep decline. 
Or, choosing further, warn them with a tale; 
'Tis due that they be hailed, so be alert 
To their demeanor; e'en if that be sure. 
Make slow advance, while thinking to convert 
Those who arise as sick men from their cure. 



— 42 — 

(Four journeymen enter) 

1st journeyman 
The days that were here, 
Obscured, dark and sere. 
No longer encircle a tomb; 
They came and have passed, 
And dwindled so fast, 
That silence has vanquished their gloom. 

The days that are gone 
Must hallow the dawn 
Now fading in colors of light; 
And those to succeed 
Must furnish indeed 
The prowess to con(iuer the night. 

With friendship of yore 
I enter the door 

Where thoughts of remembrance recline; 
And linger to find 
Sweet pictures of mind 
Which beauties must ever entwine. 

All duties to-day 
Have melted away 
In ramblings of pleasure and spoi-t; 
The weightier talk 
Attending my walk 
Molds issues I cannot report. 

2nd journeyman 
I sing a song of a comrade dear 
Than whom no better I know; 
His heart was kind and he knew not fear 
In the bleakest of storms that blow. 

We v/alked together upon the way. 
Partners in sorrow and joy; 
No trust or secret he would betray; 
He served me as ne'er my boy. 

A fever seized him; he had to die; 
The struggles of life were vain; 
I mourn him now till I also lie 
In chambers which know not pain. 

3rd journeyman 
If every sounding bell 
Softly my love could tell, 
My soul's o'erpowering spell 
All would imbibe. 



— 43 — 

Darling to part to-day 
Causes my heart dismay ; 
Wilt then not bid me stay 
Ere I shall go? 

As that can never be, 

Heed to remember me, 

Should time be kind to thee 

^^^hen I am gone. 

Thine eyes in kindled gleam 

Shall occupy my dream 

On every bank and stream 

When far away. 

Thy lips of roseate hue, 

Dearer than pearly dew, 

May time their charms renew 

For evermore. 

'Tis hard such leave to take ; 

The trembling heart may break 

When ;inguisned soul can make 

The task not light. 

4th journeyman 
l,et ine sing the songs of glory 
Which my countrymen enfold, 
Patriotic, joyful story. 
By my foibears often told. 
Followers of freedom's banner, 
Bearers of the salt. of earth, 
They pursued in solemn manner 
Things replete with moral worth 
When the call came for a nation 
To be welded with their blood. 
They stood anchored to their station 
And survived the tidal flood. 
They avowed it as their mission 
To repel the tiger's claw 
Hacked within a king's ambition, 
And themselves to make the law. 
Liberty of conscience ever 
They proclaimed to be tne goal, 
While no human force should sever 
Scruples of a single soul. 
They the fruits of toil and labor 
For all ages made secure; 
And in justice without favor 
Reared the structure to endure. 



— 44 — 

Dexter 

Since feet and heart can just as lightly be 
As your tuned throat, it is quite clear to me 
That you were guests attending at a dance 
Where gaity imprest each ogling glance ; 
Now render us among your straight account 
Whence pleasure issued from the bubbling fount 

1st journeyman 
You are an older man, I do perceive. 
Than I may ever be, and I believe 
That from mere inference no harm can flow 

To him who mourns the prostrate night of woe;, 
Ask therefor my companions to withdraw 
The curtain which perchance conceals a flaw. 

Dexter 

Well, anyone; but let me judge the tale 
If it be charming or exceeding stale ; 
It is be worth attention and contain 
More than harangue whose sublety is vain. 

2nd journeyman 
These landscape scenes have quenched my weeping eyes,. 
Yet numberless emotions choke in sighs. 
And these waft loitering reason far beyond 
The pale of speech in which I should respond. 

3rd journeymann 
Upon the morrow I may be inclined 
To tell you where the casket is confined 
That holds the miter which the devil wore 
When he the Lord unto the mountain bore. 

Foley 

You are mistaken, friends, it seems to me, 
In what your estimate leads you to see 
In this poor man ; how can the v/orld to-day 
Act the curmudgeon in a false array. 
And come with bare excuses to subdue 
Some fretting quest which chance events construe? 
We are both men who labored on the soil 
In shabby dress, and in pursuit of toil 
And weary tasks our hands were scratched ; the I'oad 
Has not been light beneath the staggering load 
Which we have borne; is then the bread we eat 
Much less deserved than that of nimble feet 
Which bear the forms of that ignoble brood 
Who gain by schemes rich raiment and their food? 



— 45 — 

4th journeyman 

You seem indeed deserving of reply 
That may dissolve perverseness of the tie 
Which finds all mankind in a common pace 
And brings familiar problems face to face; 
We still may pass as strangers who have met, 
Without some turbid feelings of regret 
To rise and rankle in each separate breast 
And thus become too dangerous a guest ; 
This is the time when nature breaks away 
From winter's rest, and springtime with its lay 
Of sweet revival fills the naked glen 
As stagnant earth bursts into life again ; 
Its gladdening strain has touched the tender chords 
Which buoyant spirit willingly aff'ords; 
And therefor to the cloudless spheres belong 
The words our merry mood conveys in song; 
But to impart some tidings of the day: 
Manghetto's mari-iage, ei"e we came away. 
Had taken place; he boarded with his bride 
A stately airship, which on every side 
Was hemmed in by their friends who took good care 
To thrust old customs on the fleeing pair: 
They laughingly soon rose to heights above 
Where clamoring voices cannot follow love. 

Dexter 

Sweet marriage bells ring for the love-lorn swain 
That he unconsciously the race maintain; 
No truer destiny condigns a part 
Than which he plays according to his chart; 
Of all things thriving nature tells the tale : 
They live that their own specie may not fail. 

Foley 

Your kindly words have satisfied my mind 
That man can be a brother of his kind. 
Though they in purpose may be far apart. 
And each pursue the dictates of his heart 
As he finds duties waiting; may you be 
As circumspect with all as now with me; 
And should we meet again upon life's trail, 
A closer fi-iendship will perhaps prevail. 

(Exeunt) 



— 46 — 
ACT III. 

Simon 

Do you remember Harris, who was here 

And served as watchman till the pi-esent year? 
To him the world was sorrowful at best 
Until they bore him to nis final rest. 

Joseph 

Aye, I recall the tall and wizened man, 
Re-christened Peter of McDuffy's clan; 
1 always found him jovial and kind; 
Alert to duties and to failings blind; 
And withal in demeanor so polite, 
Our frequent contact waxed into delight; 
Yet his near circumstances were to me 
As undisclosed as the remotest sea 
Whereof bold mariners may weave a tale 
If wrapt in dreams of ship and flapping sail. 

Simon 

Yes, it is he, whom they accused one day 
Of having knowledge how a golden tray 
Had disappeared with other valued things; 
Despite denial some wicked hirelings 
Crushed him to earth with crimination's roof. 
And brought dismissal but no cogent proof. 

Joseph 

Who was it that could thus lay heavy charge 
Upon this man, and then the taint enlarge 
To suit his pleasure; seemingly such deed 
Of reparation sorely stands in need; 
For shadowed crime laid at a guiltless door, 
With advent of its scent is vengeful war. 

Simon 

Some spies and busybodies spread the word 
Whereof the awful consequence is heard 
E'en now in bitter sobs and many tears 
Of a lone widow, sadly wrapt in fears 
Since that event, who on each blessed day 
Into a sacred graveyard wends her way 
To kneel and pray for him that will not rise 
Whom falsehood slew with weapons forged in lies; 
Struck by the poisonous darts poor Hari'is fell 
To swift decay; but if the dead could tell 



— 47 — 

How sins of falsehood halt the perfect noon, 
How pang-s of sorrow laid them low so soon, 
The nobler traits of manhood might obtain 
Among the things now real and then inane. 

Joseph 

And were the facts not gathered to be shown 
In hideousness to those who first had thrown 
These blind suspicions on the wounded breast 
Whose faulted faith was intermittent rest ? 
And if this failed to alter their decree, 
Was not appeal from their black perfidy 
Made to Manghetto as the ruling head. 
That justice be administered instead? 

Simon 

Ah, sweet is confidence, but without place 
In cold realities, that crowns with grace 
The limpid struggles which assume a name 
In human habitudes unknown to fame! 
The grave Manghetto whom we erstwhile knew 
To seldom bend to harshness, him imbue 
Now the miasma of great wealth, which breed 
A stubborn apathy to kindly deed; 
Nay, he refused to even recognize 
The woman's claim whose dire wants arise — 
For her and children— from the ghoulish birth 
Of foul conspiracy conceived in mirth. 

Joseph 

I am surprised at issues such as these, 
Which carry harm but nothing that can please ; 
Compassion is a compound bond of wrong 
In palsied exercise that should be strong. 

Simon 

And since this injury was hatched some child 
Made full confession; but still reconciled 
Are its confessors to their harmful act. 
Which they insist holds nothing to retract; 
A penny's worth of soul may thus bequeath 
A blandished sword unto its mocking sheath ; 
And echoes of an all aspiring world 
Of cast bereft be from the caverns hurled, 
Till woe shall toll the unsubstantial chime 
That clings to devastation throughout time. 



— 48 — 

Joseph 

But whosoever now presumes to stir 
This ticklish matter will the spite incur 
Of those in power; and they would cry beware 
To those whose fine compunctions gives them care; 
And slightly pricked would order the discharge 
Of him whose fortunes flounder with the barg-e 
Which they have built; 'tis better that the tongne 
Be held in check than to be fiercely stung 
By favor's loss, and drift upon the sea 
Of tender mercy. 

Simon 

That the extasy, 
Which feeling's of man's brotherhood instill, 
Is yet enslaved despite discerning will 
I may admit; reduced to abject state 
Are coward men, aye, till it is too late 
To re-erect the haunts of freedom's sway 
Where human rights bemantle whom they may; 
All cavil at the frail and common gift 
Of pi'ostrate mastery fails to uplift 
The stolid banter of the grafted frown 
Which orphaned prestige suckles on renown ; 
The seeds of meek submission which we sow 
Must ripen into hai'vest as they grow; 
Yet woe betide the tyrants who have left 
All commerce of its equities bereft! 

(Exeunt) 

(A Directors meeting) 
Seci'etary 

This convocation, gentlemen, is held 
For reasons which a word will soon explain: 
Oui- business so expands that we must weld 
All segregated parts into the main ; 
As you remember profits have been large, 
And long exceeded the applied amount 
Of capital; but here and there some charge 
Might still be changed and alter the account; 
But to accomplish this we must combine 
The sub- joined interests which we now control, 
So that one corporation may allign 
Their management into a perfect whole; 
The shrinkage of the profits will decrease. 
And close inspection of each serving part 



— 49 — 

Command advancement in such newer lease^ 
And give our holdings a successive start; 
We are advised by counsel to conceal 
The profits which we annually report, 
As thoughtless men might use them to reveal 
The business whence these profits we extort; 
So, if we find the issue of new stock. 
Which all may hold propoitionate as now, 
To be the falcon that will thrice unlock 
The vaults to which necessity must bow. 
Their due requirement we must now compose 
With speed and diligence, and then advance 
Their trite accoutrements wherefrom arose 
The requisite ambodiments of chance. 

1st Director 

I do concur therein ; let it be done, 
And these things speedily be pushed ahead ; 
Through progress we may what is stagnant shun,, 
And bar recession with its nameless dread. 

2nd Director 

I, too, consent; we would be blind indeed 
To our own interests were we to allow 
That staid advancement at the cries recede 
Which gather from the cities to the plow; 
A prospering business at all times demands 
A watchful nurtui'e; and the public weal 
Is best subserved by those whose heart and hands 
Refer this subject to their o\^'n appeal. 

Manghetto 

I thank you for these sentiments, as we 
May now proceed to lay the cornerstone 
Of a commercial greatness that will be 
An age's envy e'en whose weakest moan 
Ascends to Plutus; and we shall behold 
Achievement's epitaph in letters writ 
With regal power upon a shrine of gold. 
Which countless men will seek to worship it. 

1st Director 

Be it recorded then that we accede; 
The resolution drawn to serve the need 
Of all our purposes; and be its aim 
To build a monument unto our name. 



— 50 — 

Manghetto 

But to obey the letter of the law 
Shall be a precept; and to watch the state 
In stops of depredation we may draw 
Her keenest talents to our waiting gate; 
The demagogues who openly assail 
All honest el'lorts, with their kindred's help 
Their own gross records, if such will avail, 
Shall find exposed until ihey cease to yelp; 
The fiat shall go forth that fi-om the main 
All debris must be cleared which might debar 
A speedy ruption of the dragging chain 
That brings its obseciuies beneath a star. 

2nd Director 

With sentiment 'tis useless to concur 
Which would retard all pi'ogress; to defer 
Pai'ticipation in the shifting marts 
Is too disquieting for anxious hearts. 

Manghetto 

The work assumed, theie can be no retreat, 
Unless the world roll down the heavy grade 
Where chaos and the hosts unconquered meet 
All adversaries for a squelching raid; 
Dame rumor too, with bogey little tales, 
Will be undone as is its sister's groom 
Who with surmises drove the tiny nails 
That seal the past within a humble tomb; 
Yet cii'cumspection should the bounds exceed 
Which, in espousal of the lingering thought 
That treasui'cs lie in threadbai'c human need 
Leave all beside to measure what is naught. 

1st Director 

As foremost builders of an enterprise 
Our course is plain to let its future rise 
Before us full of promise; let us rest 
Content with time to render its attest. 

Manghetto 

On ground where science sways the pensive fields 
Wo plan to battle; and a wholesome fruit, 
Which her rich laden storehouse always yields, 
Will be reward of labor's keen pursuit; 
Nor need we wondoi- at, or (piestion crave 



— 51 — 

Of all its varied functions, how they move, 
For anchored things in all times answer gave 
That requisites their state of being prove. 

(Exeunt) 

(Two citizens) 

1st citizen. 

When the sun is smiling yonder 
In the glory of the west, 
I oft sit to watch and ponder 
O'er this peerless daily guest. 

Where the twilight's golden tresses 
Cast no shadows or a sound, 
I am wrapt in sweet caresses 
Which an ardent soul has found. 

When the moon is slowly lifted 
Through the silver strands of night. 
Then my spirit, newly gifted, 
Soars on wings of pure delight. 

When the stars with sparkling lustre 
Lend attraction to the sky. 
Then I pierce some splendid cluster 
With the message of a sigh. 

To the heaven's flood of splendor. 
All encii'cled with its grace, 
My whole being I surrender 
As a part of boundless space. 

All the fields when under cover 
Of a verdure tall and green. 
Will relate to ardent lover 
An expectant harvest scene. 

In the forest's stately mansions, 
Upon passage damp and dark. 
Lofty thoughts and vast expansions 
Suffer hearts to re-embark. 

Mother earth, in all her seasons, 
Always dear and ever kind. 
Speedily with tender reasons 
Claimeth access to my mind. 

Wood and glen and stream and ocean, 
Sun and moon and stars above. 
Stir the depths of keen emotion- 
With an all pervading love. 



— 52 — 

2ncl citizen 

Hey! Whither bound my gracious friend, 
And whence arrived? I do intend 
To witness the solemnities 
To-day appointed, since in these 
Perhaps revealed is gentle dawn 
Of righteousness which brain and brawn 
In every age sought to attain 
With hope of everlasting- reign. 

1st citizen 

The concourse of the w^orld to view, 
And old acquaintance to renew, 
Shall be my object. I am now 
A day from Buxton and avow 
To be a guest at Yamhill place 
Long ere the spokesman's beaming face 
Confronts the multitude; the chance 
To see the mig-hty hosts advance 
I would not miss; and as these years. 
With life of gladness and of fears. 
Have all elapsed without the grace — 
Which vanished cycles should embrace — 
Of broader aim, I now claim time. 
With promises of things sublime, 
As the g-reat epoch which shall be 
The cause of future joys to me; 
Nor doubt, as ceaseless days descend 
Into eternity, its end 
Some muses' master will extoll, 
Till echoes up to heaven roll. 

2nd citizen 

In some things we are both ag^reed : 
The harvest of the mingled seed. 
To-day sow^n broadcast, may return 
With profits, such as labors earn. 
At virtue's shrine ; yet tarnished spoil. 
Wrung from a nation's heavy toil. 
For shamelessness a recompense, 
Is sorrow's price of its defense ; 
A wolf encaged is safe indeed; 
But who will tame him that his breed 
Will be of service, or exchang-e 
His habits of the wooded range? 
If it be man who, in his kind. 



— 53 — 

Is both a wolf and lamb combined, 

Then may the meekness of his laws, 

With gritting- teeth and whetted claws, 

In trifling leeway soon explain 

That naught remains of lamblike pain ; 

Nor yet his human nature heed 

Another's being or his need. 

That he may change, man must be brought 

Into the range of nobler thought; 

But ideals of progressive aim. 

Which youthful ardor gives a name. 

Fall short of merit if the years 

Will wipe out memory with its tears; 

Yet the persistent youthful mind 

In molding change must anchorage find, 

For age is dull and will not turn 

The leaves which youth has failed to learn. 

1st citizen 

But present systems will not bring 
Much change of thought toward anything. 
Unless still further to degi'ade 
Man's heritage with cruel blade ; 
Do we not hear the constant theme 
Whence gold emerges as supreme. 
And find true character in garb 
At which glib critics gaily carp? 
Does honor that adorns a name 
Hinge not on questionable fame? 
Is not wealth's pinnacled result 
The crux of graven worship's cult? 
Since their own ends they all pursue. 
With lambs as palatable stew. 
Not for tomorrow, but to-day. 
Men seek enactment of the play 
Which, knowing well tomorrov^-'s pain. 
Will yet exact a present gain ; 
To further glean the present state 
I will an incident relate : 
My father, not so long deceased, 
Sent foi' a surgeon whom it pleased 
Through operations with the knife 
To terminate his painful life; 
The surgeon then for useless skill 
With diligence brought in a bill 
That staggered us ; we thought- the charge 
Was burdensome and far too large; 



— 54 — 

The undertaker's great expense 

Too, almost put us in suspense; 

The firm of lawyers, whom we hired, 

We deemed had with the Court conspired 

To so curtail our legacies 

That there was little but their fees; 

And then high taxes to be paid, 

Besides assessments newly made. 

Found us, forsooth, in splendid mood 

To damn the state and all its brood. 

2nd citizen 

Man, who is rational and free. 
Will circumscribe security. 
And then, with property at stake, 
Will not abolish, but will make 
Concise demands upon the state 
And all its functionary weight; 
Yet if the levied tax exceed 
Requirements of public need, 
Wliich confiscate the fruits of toil, 
And private weal be public spoil, 
Then it were better that reform 
Would banish the official worm, 
The tentacled, oppressive arm 
That has no limit to its harm. 

1st citizen 

But w^e may perish ere the good 
Of a reform be understood ; 
Or while we wait to see a change 
Our hope may hope itself estrange. 

2nd citizen 

When bruised by wretches who descend 
To desolation's fearful trend. 
Which has its victims to oppress 
Caught in the gulf of great distress, 
Man then surviving on the sea 
Of ravished hope will live to be 
The scourge of them that bore him down, 
Though guile must henceforth vail his frown ; 
Yet men, to whom I may confide 
All my affairs, still breast the tide 
Of insurrection, or delay 
The sweeping gusts of keen dismay; 



— 55 — 

Like the refreshing-, cooling spring 
Adorns the wilderness, they bring 
The essence of a sweet refrain. 
With melodies of banished pain. 

1st citizen 

Fair beacons in the sable night 
Of human hoi'ror spread their lig;ht 
Indeed on all ; and only they 
Outspeed the treading forms of clay 
Whose imaged spirit will despoil 
With evil hands the sacred soil; 
And from the breasts of those who claim 
For universal peace and aim 
The deepest thought can only pour 
Man's progress never known before; 
With men who wiggle through the cares 
Of stormy days replete with snares 
I find no fault; they will complete 
Their labors requisite and meet 
Like pebbles merge with flowing stream. 
And founder with their polished gleam ; 
But others who in weird array 
Come legalized, that they may prey 
On substance gathered in the sweat 
Of honest toil, ignobly set 
Rapacity in honored place. 
And placate honor with disgrace; 
These fiends traffic with the soul, 
And gain of lucre is their goal. 

2nd citizen 

Wealth gotten by deceitful skill 
And filched from suffering need, until 
It quench desire still-born of wrong, 
Is undeserving graceful song; 
But wealth untainted may employ 
The means of justice, and its joy 
In issuing flow cease to depart 
From i-evels of the truthful heart; 
And its disposal will command 
Required leisure for a band 
Of ardent scholars from whose zeal 
Flows vantage to the social weal; 
The mind entwined with robust ann 
Propels the labors on the farm; 
And labors twmed with mind propel 



— 56 — 

The aim of towns, if they excel ; 

Both town and farm excel in charm 

If mind behind direct the arm ; 

But gain of brain will late remain 

A stigmatized inhuman stain, 

And trace its place of mere disgrace 

In annals of the human race. 

If it has left the hands bereft 

Whose aims have claims upon the theft. 

1st citizen 

I love the farm, though I concede 
The town-environments proceed 
Oft on the plane that both ai-e great 
Within the confines of the state; 
If bloated wealth would not ignore 
The poverty beyond its door ; 
If telling truth were of avail. 
And sternest manhood would prevail. 
Then might compare be made between 
The town and farm whereon to lean ; 
If we but lived a thousand years, 
In pathos of its change and fears. 
The earth might cease to be for man 
A dungeon wrought from thoughtless plan. 
And he forbear to spill the gore 
Of brother men as years afore. 

(Exeunt citizens) 

THE CONCOURSE OF THE WORIJ). 

A public place. 
Spokesman 

Hail ! Hosts of earth ; Hail ! envoys from afar; 
The voices speeding from the earliest dawn 
Have now brought stars to earth, made earth a stai*, 
And realms ethereal close together drawn ; 
The endless waves, awakened through the force 
Of broad, imperial knowledge, which the mind 
Pei'ceives as dominent within the source 
Of boundless space, now destined uses find ; 
The distance twixt the continents and sea 
Is rendered trifling; journeys may be made 
With speed and comfort, and from effoi-ts free 
Which fondest dreams of all the past forbade; 
The world is sending messages to-day 
Around the globe the while the rising sun. 



— 57 — 

In startling glamor through the morning's grey, 

His ceaseless course has fairly but begun; 

Ships plow all waters with a noiseless speed 

Wherever nations an exchange demand 

Of products which commercial use and need 

Will satisfy for dwellers in the land ; 

And through all regions speed the craft of men, 

By power propelled that sprung from nature's heart. 

When town and farm will interchange again 

Its wares and products in an open mart ; 

From massive towns to all the countryside 

Lead public highways which an access claim 

To all the habitudes where men abide 

And serve their purposes of varied name; 

And rour.d ybout, in almost every clime, 

Man finds the means to lessen daily toil 

I^or his subsistence, which in olden time 

Required drudgery for meager spoil ; 

The people flourish, and its nourished taste 

For things uncommon groweth to be stale ; 

What former ages found luxurious waste 

Is now too common to adorn a tale ; 

And from the earth, the mother of us all. 

The reapers daily gathei- of her stores 

Which, yielding surplus, seek the sea-gird wall 

Where ships lie anchored at indentured shores; 

Metallic ores, yet ere reduced to kind, 

Including gold and silver, still repose 

Within her womb, wherein skilled workmen find 

Ambition's ladder that will never close; 

In countless workshops, dotting all the land, 

Which every want conceivable supply. 

The laborer may find the work at hand 

That fits his skill and pleases every eye ; 

In valleys and the wide expansive plains 

Grow barley, oats and flax, the rye and wheat, 

The speltz and corn, and other precious grains 

'Mong cereals fit for man and beast to eat ; 

Where fine volcanic ash in eons' flight 

Was, windswept, cast upon the desert waste, 

The element of water spreads delight 

In fields of beets, sprung up in summer's haste 

While nursed by man, which, ready for the press. 

Will yield the liquid sugar, sweet as cane. 

And then refined and crushed appear in dress 

As fine as sand, as snowdrifts without stain ; 

And trees abound, the apple, pear and peach, 



— 58 — 

The cherry, orange, apricot and prune. 

And many more; and nuts are within reach, 

Nutritious, wholesome, and from pests immune; 

Alfalfa, clover, millet and the grass 

Of native vesture feed the blooded kine 

In hill and dale, including, as we pass, 

The sheep and horse, angora goat and swine ; 

And within recess of the wildest wood 

Range cougar, bear, the elk and timid deer. 

Whose habits are by huntsmen understood. 

Who trail the game when autumn days are sere ; 

The bays, and lakes, and streams all teem with fish 

Of varied kinds ; but in the briny deep 

The whale is sought ; quite savory is the dish 

From oysters made, of fall or winter's reap ; 

And razor-clams, the lobster and the shrimp, 

All luscious morsels, from the pot or pan 

Come to appease the chorals of the imp 

Which gnaws with constant strains the famished man; 

The gardiner's craft supplies the gorging yields 

Of salad, I'hubarb, celery, radish, leek. 

Asparagus and onion, grown in fields 

With that perfection which great efforts seek; 

From sunny regions come the cotton bales 

To vie with flaxen fiber, silk and wool 

In garment fabrics, which the weaver's tales 

Of human wants long ransacked to be full ; 

The art of tapestry is speeding on ; 

And curtains, laces, rugs and finery wrought 

With skillful hands, some plainly dyed, some drawn 

In fields of flowers or signets, may be sought 

From public vendors ; in the goldsmith's art, 

Or jeweller's craft, is w^orkmanship concealed 

Wherein crude artifice can have no part, 

Since its magnificence is long revealed ; 

And father time, who beckons to the hours 

To blot out days as one by one they pass. 

Is chained to that contrivance on the towers 

Which tolls his warnings through the sounding brass; 

Man's specie cannot perish, for the race 

Is sheltered from the elemental roar; 

In countless homes the vaulting force of space 

Has lost the terrors it proclaimed of yore ; 

The earth hei'self ordained man's happy fate : 

She gave him shelter, fuel and his food, 

Endowed his mind, the which will correlate 

The tangled forms of her spontaneous mood ; 



— 59 — 

And so, my friends, we find the east and west, 
The north and south, and states that intervene, 
At peace with all the world, an eager guest. 
Though they be absent, in this circled scene; 
Blest be these shores; blest all who gather here; 
May peace have victory, and all the earth 
Sing but of harmony ; may banished fear 
Give place to love, and love replenish mirth ! 

A chorus 

Pilgrims from a distant clime. 
Join us in a holy rhyme — 
Gladness which on wings of time 
Quells hatred's pregnant wail. 
Circle lound the while the light 
From the strong meridian height 
Views this concourse in its might, 
Whose purpo.se may v.nt fail. 
Listen friends, and listening hear 
Chorals of responsive cheer 
That will never roam with fear 
Through mountain crag and dale. 
Woe must flee and earnest zeal 
Fill the air with gladsome peal, 
And the rents of anguish heal, 
Which rancor does entail. 

The Wallers 

The dreaded tiiith alone 
May hearken to the moan 
Of hopeless stiife. 
The blighting curse of pride 
Is surging in the tide 
Of ill-spent life. 
The bitter pangs of need 
Are sprouting from the seed 
' Of boastful self. 
A stifling cloud of dust 
Is power bound to lust 
Of cruel pelf. 
The selfish hearts awake 
No pinings in the brake 
Of reeling brain. 
The univei'sal will 
May mingle and instill 
A jealous strain. 
All kindly hands conceal 



— 60 — 

What haughty worms reveal 
In gToaning' fame. 
The fertile ends of earth 
Still vibrate in the mirth 
Of purpled shame. 

Africa 

When pale Atlantis ominously heard 
The sullen sea he spake the dreadful word 
Whose awful mandate soon destroyed the bond 
Engendered on the bridge across the pond 
Betwixt us twain ; and then I trem.bling lay 
In years of anguish, till the potent sway 
Of Ammon, the concealed, the recondite, 
Incomprehensible, restored the might 
That lingers round a throne, though he to man 
Remained remote and thus pursued his plan ; 
Khem, souice of light and life, bore the renown 
As lifter of the hands, lord of the crown, 
Whose benediction rested on the field 
When nature's growth matured her burdened yield; 
And long to Kneph, who held the breath divine. 
Did all creation and its forms incline; 
And mild Osiris, who with Isis reigned. 
Dwelt in Amenti where the dead attained 
To fields Elysian, who were judged and pure 
As his great goodness would to them innure; 
All these have passed, and other names instead 
Rolled from the oceans to my watershed ; 
And diverse creeds, and varied shapes of men 
Have come and gone ; but like a mother-hen 
With tenderness nursed I my brood of time. 
And bore its seed to the most distant clime ; 
Aye, even here are they of Ethiop's race. 
As chattels brought to labor in disgrace ; 
But if my children long in bondage dwelled 
Wthin thy realm, it lacked not those who held 
That this was wrong ; the shackles were cast off 
With thine own blood when heaping scorn and scoff 
Was fully ripe; and since I long adore 
The wondi'ous record written of thy lore, 
I came to bring thee homage, and to turn 
Thy leaves of glory that my shores might learn 
Their lofty secrets; but I fear thy fate. 
If hence transcribed, would leave me desolate; 
For thine material vantage may impart 
No t'ood of gladness to mv wailing heart 



— 61 — 

Which unto wisdoir's realm would access g'ai^s 
Where inhidi'ul purpose may in strength lemain 
The keystone of the arch, and beauty's beam 
Join roug'h-hewn ashlei' in the setting soam. 

Asia 
Lone, brilliant Sin dwelt in a boundless sky 
As master of the month, and circled by 
Up in the sacred vault of heaven's sheen, 
While forts were strengtened and the work o'verseen; 
And Shamas, the establishei", long reigned 
As judge in heav'n and earth, whose right ordained 
The conquest of the day, the powers of war. 
Whom, governing regent, all base things adore, 
The while he prompted functions of the mind 
And guided nature to produce her kind ; 
Vul was the lord in regions of the air. 
Where hid the rain and tempests, from whose lair 
Sprung all fecundity ; beyond their scope 
Of time reigned Merodoch ; in fear or hope. 
As well it might, man's understanding gave 
Them habitation in remotest cave; 
And in my bounderies was fixed the birth 
Of those whose work remained when trembling earth 
Let all else perish ; Zoroaster first, 
And Buddha and Confucius slaked the thirst 
Of groveling man ; and Christ v/as crucified 
That he might live in mankind undenied; 
And still another, Mohamet by name. 
To millions brought a message and his fame; 
My distant vales still blush with crimson dawn 
Of potent thought, whose germinating spawn 
Must people woi'lds, till every beating heart, 
Still cradled or awake, its life impart; 
Peace have I sought; and solace born of peace, 
Which many 3^ears commingling might release 
With joy and glory; but my children's smiles 
Are yet with anguish blent; the fatal wiles 
Of envious intrigue still have ground to boast 
Of many conquests o'er my festal coast; 
Long have I striven in the duteous care 
For truth and virtue, till from doubt's despair 
Rose fostered love, and evil found no stain 
On its escutcheon, or the world a strain 
Of quivering justice, though its studded gate 
Stand as purloined by men's conniving hate ; 
How long will it endure? And then, how long 
Must peace yet languish in the war with wrong? 



— 62 — 

Its dazzling radiance I would now awake 

With typhoon-swiftness, that its billows break 

The golden vestments round the solemn bier 

Where hope reposes in a shroud of fear; 

Thy Gods are mine — I gave them thee forsooth 

Yet is no issue solved ; the name of truth 

Reveals small pennants in the growing corn, 

Or message traveling with the breaking morn ; 

The finest gai'ment may conceal the knife, 

Keen-edged and leady, for the bloody strife 

Twixt brother men ; deep sorrow lies unhealed, 

By kindness slighted upon balsamed field, 

With festering soreness in the noontide-gloom 

Of man-made misery; is pain the doom 

Of human happiness, and care the bane 

To follow love or aspiration's vein? 

My wasted lands, still fertile in their waste. 

Cry but for peace and justice; ruin's haste, 

When it is stayed, must feel the panting breath 

Of oracles fulfilled, and save from death 

The nurselings of its favor, that its seed 

Will know but love, and hopes which onward lead. 

Europe 
The full-named pantheon of Greece to probe 
I came not hither; nor to tear the robe, 
Though it were meet, of lore in ancient Rome, 
Which still abides; nor in the templed dome 
Of northern skies enshrine for hearts of men 
The deities who lost their throne again ; 
One God now reigns, and I but worship one, 
Him, long revealed through his begotten Son ; 
But worthier aim has led me to thy shores: 
The aim, dear sister, that no further wars 
Between the nations may their ruin spread 
Upon the world ; or human blood be shed 
Henceforth in willful murder; and to pray 
That thou may'st lead us to the golden day; 
ilf from my loins sprung worthy sons of thine, 
Not thy disparagement, or theirs or mine, 
Can be determined; but I deem the tie 
Of peace and justice as the fitting die 
To seal all matters; since nor fear nor pride 
May plague, or blight, or earthquake cast aside, 
And want, necessity, disease and hate. 
All dread calamities, dissolve the state. 
The world is linked as to a concrete chain. 
To share in common every loss and gain ; 



— 63 — 

My own repository ot the days 

That gave the world philosophy, and lays 

Of metric song, and sculpture, name and fame, 

And civil law, and things vv'hich later aim 

In science, poesie, and every art 

Of keen endeavor gleaned for mind and heart, 

Were long bequeathed to all; my every lore 

Is as thine own, and to its sacred door 

May come the Christian, Pagan, all who will, 

To take their measure of the fountain's spill ; 

Behold ! unconquered is fierce nature's brood, 

And unrepressed man's own dull attitude 

Toward humankind ; but as to seething past 

Is joined the vortex of the present blast, 

So past and present must together weld 

The future's glory to be firmly held; 

Behold! when friendship on hope's banner writ 

Floats in the breeze ; and man's pure spirit sit 

In holy judgment where morality 

Is undefiled and love's great, boundless sea 

Surge steadily on envy's battered shore. 

And mix its deep and melancholy roar; 

Then may the fellow^ship of man ordain 

Profoundest peace, and truth's ensuing reign 

Find justice wielded with a stainless sword, 

And virtue pregnant with a sweet reward ; 

Behold the goal, the boon of honor's wreath! 

What sanctity has he who stands beneath 

Its graceful circle, when on duty's way 

Your mutual issues must fulfill the day ! 

And if ye hearken to its farthest voice. 

Then ye in good, not ill-deeds will rejoice; 

And pity's cries will cease to sound in vain, 

And strong hands fail not weaker to sustain ; 

Or boundless charity, with faith and hope, 

Fail of fruition; or the blazing scope 

Of all good tenets lack in ardent zeal ; 

Or fortitude forget the public weal. 

May love prevail ; the pot of incense glow ; 

The pipe of peace but soothing rest bestow; 

And only justice and eternal truth 

Crown all the nations with the hope of youth ! 

Australia 
Deeds fraught with nobleness betide the part 
Of my own hemisphere ! The beauteous start 
Of thrift, intelligence, and every act, 
That gains momentum from a solemn pact, 



— 64 — 

Be mine to keep ; the coinage of reserve 

I may forswear, and join with those who serve 

In mankind's weal as ever loath to bring 

A salutation seared with misery's sting; 

Delectible I deem it to be wise; 

And coming centuries in visions rise, 

Out of the oceans still unknown in name, 

With right endeavor to secure the fame 

Of honor, peace and bliss, while every hand 

Will banish carnage from my favored land. 

America 
Dark is the past; the future full of light; 
But as we scan the skyline either way, 
We may behold the lighthouse of the night 
Departing hence, or dawning in the grey 
Of expectation; evil and dismay 
Held their fierce carnival, but also joy 
Had many innings; so in future time. 
Midst wrenching sorrow, pain and base alloy, 
May earth aspire to the things sublime; 
All destitution, misery and crime, 
I deem abnormal ; and the joyful state 
Of human happiness to be the goal. 
Whereto must diligence direct the fate 
Of all good men; from pole to pole. 
Wherever man is branded in his soul 
With hope and glory of a fitful stress, 
In my hearts core will I but peace proclaim; 
And with a firm beginning, and no less 
A true abidance, in the house of shame 
For truth find entrance to destroy the same; 
If tales of wealth, adornment, raiment, food, 
Have much impressed ye, they do not reveal 
The higher aims wherewith the multitude 
Is much impelled ; and they in truth conceal 
True traits of manhood in their troublous peal ; 
All that is noble, beautiful and fair. 

Choice minds long wooed who, leagued to friendship's bond, 
Have trailed remissness to its secret lair. 
And wakened life anew, so it respond 
To duty's call whereof their hearts are fond; 
Much have ye given, and, as I perceive. 
With kindly feeling; may it soon return 
In hope rewarded; and its lessons leave 
An impress which no future time will spurn ; 
Peace shall prevail if ye the fiat learn 
Which self-restraint imposes on us all ; 



— 65 — 

Where wisdom sits in judgment to extend 
The reign of justice, there man's noblest call 
Lies but in happiness, and will descend 
In deeds of righteousness unto the end. 

(Exeunt) 



ACT IV. 



Judge Prim (a court proceeding) 

The next case on the docket does relate 
To one Manghetto, and if Counsel state 
Its present status, I will then proceed 
To its disposal as may fit the need. 

The lawyer 
We ask at this time, if your Honor please, 
For a decree ; the pleadings filed are these : 
Upon the plaintiff's part is the complaint, 
In form and facts beyond the law's attaint; 
Defendant's plea, which in abatement read. 
Was overruled, and his demurrer led 
To the same fate ; he filed his answer then. 
To which we made reply; but, somehow, when 
The issues had been joined, and trial set. 
And all subpoenaes issued, we regret. 
He made default; the Court an order made 
That this be entered, and the hearing stayed 
Until a referee could fix a day 
To take the testimony; no delay 
Has been encountered since, except it be 
That which occasioned the Court's referee 
To sign the findings ; these I now will read 
And our proceedings terminate with speed: 

The Court doth find that the complaint is true; 
That plaintiff is entitled to relief 
According to her prayer; a fair review 
Discloses that Manghetto was a chief 
In wrongful doing; reinless disrespect 
Has been established by abundant proof; 
And incompatibility, neglect. 
And other things profane, beneath his roof 
Found time to enter; that the married life 
Of the Manghettos' numbers fifteen years ; 
That plaintiff Clara, as defendent's wife. 
Was tender, true and kind, and it appears 
Her ruling spouse stood ready to obey ; 



— 66 — 

That from their union did no issue spring ; 
That the defendant should to plaintiff pay, 
For Counsel she retained this suit to bring, 
A thousand Dollars; and the same stipend 
Unto the plaintiff every running week. 
Unless, indeed, she make herself an end 
If she a later matrimony seek ; 
The home which stands recorded in her name 
The plaintiff should possess as heretofore; 
And if her choice and prayer be still the same, 
The Coui't forthwith her maiden name restore ; 
That now the mairiage bonds betwixt the twain 
Be duly severed and hence held for naught; 
That proper records the decree contain 
To plaintiff granted in the suit she brought. 
Thus far the findings ; th' other records here 
Contain the evidence, transci'ibed and clear, 
That justifies the findings herein made, 
And plaintiif's further claim to legal aid; 
Now to conclude: this duplicate decree. 
Which I prepared, is written to agree 
With every just conclusion of the law 
Which findings will permit therefrom to draw; 
We ask no more, your Honor, and no less. 
Within the law, than what its terms express. 

Judge Prim (examining the papers) 

Since all seems regular, I now incline 
To grant the quest, and in due order sign 
For plaintiff the decree of her divorce. 
Aye, a vinculo, of immediate force; 
And now unto the Clerk this copy take 
That he may thereof pi'oper record make. 

(Exeunt) 

Three women. 

Maria 

Ah, verily, into an awful time 
Are women born now living in their prime; 
A shame it is that we with men no more 
Can get along than women could of yore; 
The men are beastly and expect too much; 
Yet think we need them as we would a crutch; 
They are conceited, cruel and obtuse, 
And heap on us but burdens and'abuse; 
They drive us as they drive a loboring slave. 
Until we stoop to fill a gaping grave. 



— 67 — 

Sadie 

Due regularity finds, me awake 
Each blessed morning- when 1 rise to make 
The preparations for the morning's meal, 
Which we all take together; then the peal 
Of workman's time will bid my husband go 
Down to his work to earn the wage, you know, 
For our support; and when he says good-bye, 
So kindly, I repeat it, and apply 
Myself thereafter to the household caies ' 
With joyous heart; the children unawares 
Will oftimes put my patience to the test 
With many troubles, but I deem it best 

To hear their prattle, which a mother-heart 
Can best interpret, and in turn impart 
A lasting impress that will gain for them 
A precious lustre in the diadem 
Of broad, sweet character; ere long the night 
Will find us home again, and our delight 
Becomes as mutual as work has been; 
So year has been to year almost akin; 
And with a body sound as well as mind, 
If but the end us as contented find 
As we are now, the future thence implied 
With all the world shall leave us satisfied. 

Maria 

How different you stand forth from all the rest ! 
At least from most who still pursue the quest 
For greater freedom ; if the life you lead 
Has brought you happiness, it is indeed 
A strange phenomenon ; at least to me 
Such things would never sufferable be; 
I hate the men: they say our hair is long, 
And that we lack in sense, and this among 
Their cumbered chivalry — a deal too flat 
H" we prerogatives must still combat 
Which they maintain ; how silly that we stand 
Not on an equal footing in the land! 

Sadie 

Our attributes are different from the male 
Whom you with so much feeling now regale; 
So why upraid them for the blameless fate 
Which but to woman's nature does relate? 
You cannot change it; and 'tis better so 
To act as woman what the Gods bestow. 



— 68 — 

Maria 

O, we are different, but not therefor weak ; 
And thoug-h this drag attached, we're free to seek. 
With long persistence to at last prevail 
Where feeble records or submission fail ; 
But here comes Alma; she is always neat, 
This little figure with the nimble feet; 
I do anticipate, I must confess. 
From her some news which may my mind distress. 

Alma 

How do you do? Maria, you look sad; 
Or something troubles you ; or you are mad. 

Maria 

I'm just a little weary, that is all; 
A moment since I did the goal recall 
Toward which all womankind should truly aim 
That we our sex from bondage might reclaim. 

Ahna 

This stale, old story always jars your nerves; 
Sweet, beaming Sadie here much praise deserves 
For having stood apart from all the strain 
That finds distracting lodgment in your brain ; 
Why not pursue a course that fills each day 
With passing troubles and a mite of play. 

Maria 

You can be privolous, I know full well, 
And much disdain the purpose to expel 
What seem to me huge obstacles to gi'owth 
When right the wrong to counteract is loath. 

Alma 

So much of life wherein we move is vain ; 
Manghetto even and his wife ordain 
But misery for themselves; by far too faint 
Is earnest voice to circumscribe the taint 
That useless strife forsooth permits to heap 
On holy things placed in their sacred keep; 
If mind perchance but covet the distress 
Of finery's deck, will other things possess 
Much charm for foolish hearts ? Will they not find 
ni-omens with their happiiicrs aligned? 
May truth forbid that caprice, hope or fret 
About dull playthings my true course beget. 



— 69 — 

Sadie 

A great distressing sickness it would seem 
Has fallen upon our time, and many deem 
A change quite radical as fit to cure 
What their own restlessness will not endure; 
But my own judgment on the home relies, 
Supreme, entire, to preserve the ties 
Which we all find so dear; as to the state 
1 think to men its destinies relate. 

Maria 

Yet many things are wrong ; we may be free 
If we but cease to always disagree; 
A thankless task it is which I pursue, 
But since the colors hoisted are as true 
As when my heart first entered in the cause, 
I shall continue therein till I win applause. 

(Exit Maria) 

Alma 

She seeks for notoriety I wean ; 
In nothing else her labors ever mean 
Resultant satisfaction that will spring 
In smiling measure from the wrought-out thing; 
What if she does exult in airs and dream 
That she will conquer and the world redeem ? 
Still many other things of greater mold 
Need to be settled ere the tale is told. 

Sadie 

All will be smooth if we but duly aim 
To do the work each day may give a name, 
And let the glamors of weird heights attend 
To their own funeral of a sorrowing end. 

(Exeunt) 

THE .JUNE PARADOX. 

A great semi-allegorical procession. 
The Warder 

How the eager throngs emerge. 
Soon to mingle with the surge, 
Or to chant the solemn dirge 
Which the moments onward urge! 

Slowly must the pageant pass . 
Through the thoroughfares; alas! 



— 70 — 

Hedgeless lawns and sprouting grass 
Feel the restless, treading mass. 

Wondering eyes their gaze bestow, 
As the freighted minutes flow 
With the progress of the show 
Through the city all aglow. 

Through the darkness of the night 
Darts the artificial light. 
Sparkling, dazzling to the sight. 
Drawn by man from nature's might. 

Spirit of June 

Enchanting is the scene unto the eye. 
Whose wondrous beauties now before me lie 
With unfixed limits; slumbers or repose 
Fling careless ministration but on those 
Of laggai'd mien, or the weary soul 
Whose ebbing energies require their toll ; 
The revelry is climbing to its height; 
And pomp and pageantry have spread delight 
For searching eyes, which since the setting sun. 
Like sentinels have with their watch begun ; 
Yet would I pray delivery from the price 
Of close devotion wherein sacrifice 
Is running over, for the envious live 
But to excel when others deign to give 
Theii' bounteous homage which unbinds the worth 
Of rare amalgam on a tainted earth ; 
Condoned are many things deemed as profane 
That awkward looks convey, or words contain 
Incautiously revealed which quickly float 
Upon the night-air from a rasping throat; 
As monarch mantled in the grand array 
Of sweetest roses I have come to sway 
The empire known to be my heritage. 
And scatter wisdom through the horn of age ; 
My realm is chained to the revolving wheel 
Of smiling fortune; without urgence steal 
The balmy breezes from the foaming sea 
To where the Cascades towering ranges be, 
And mingle with the balseim of the pines; 
Or blend with crystal drops of melting snow; 
Or test the groaning trunk whose head inclines 
To staggering height, and boughs which s'gh and grow; 
The world is welcome to my roseate bower 
Of many hues which, like a quenching showei 
Brings life to drooping fields, will fill the heart 



— 71 — 

With new-born impulse, and thereby impart 

Fresh laurels unto mortals; yonder peak 

That guards the eastern skyline is but bleak 

m gi-andeur's stature as he stands a lone, 

Grim, silent witness near my festal throne ; 

Perennial beauty flows as like a stream 

Down to the sea with joy, sure to redeem 

Its votaries from the germs of quick decay. 

If they stand ready for its potent spray; 

Free is the atmosphere of lightning's flash, 

Anr quite immune from ominous thunder's crash; 

And the refulgent sun in prosperous light 

Exempts a", creatures from its boiling blight; 

Upon the livulet's banks the hermit shades 

Of pristii-.e beauty, throughout everglades, 

Dispei'se the gloom that lingers in the mood 

Of sleeping silence in the solitude; 

And like an image, folded in a cloud 

Of woven draperies, peep from the shroud 

Of wooded spheres the fields diversified 

Where needs of man may daily be supplied ; 

Roused are unnumbered dreams which freely feed 

The bourne of inspiration, wherefrom need 

Draws vivid pictures, which forsooth reveal 

True knowledge as profound as heart can feel; 

The darkness stalking out of blackest night 

Itself hails its own conqueror, the light; 

And calm descends as master of the storm, 

With sunshine following; and all things conform 

To life unsullied, while from every source 

Springs human happiness with power and force; 

And all the glory of the season's glow 

In garb of matchless splendoi- does bestow 

On open mind the pastured, quivering spark 

That finds unerringly the vital mark ; 

The solid links are rent in lengthy chain 

Which mere perverseness forges to ordain 

For sordid purposes; a better way 

The gist of speeding fragments will display. 

Spirit of the Stars 

Since man is cradled on the western slope 
Where di'eams awaken his immortal hope. 
In fixed abode upon the failhest sea. 
Where distant hemispheres revolve in space. 
Has this occasion set my spirit free 
To view earth's plane in liquid forms of grace ; 



— 72 — 

Naught is there to enjoin a faultless claim 

From being heard ; and all in ceaseless flight 

May onward surge upon the wings of flame 

To where the broken shores fade from the sight: 

The couch of nature's dormitory here 

Remains uncanopied by fret or fear; 

And from beyond, where vibrant atmosphere 

Enfolds ethereal vividness, there flow 

The mighty currents which at eve appear 

As firmly knitted unto heaven's glow; 

At my behest the stars in yonder sky 

Their ordered mechanism duly ply, 

And move as true companions of the earth 

In a cosmogony where potent strife 

Turns phantoms of the dead to bubbling mirth, 

And brings new hope to myriad forms of life; 

They sing an elegy whereby to spread 

Delight on earth on every hoary head; 

And what is sweet, and things that are sublime, 

Or so transformed by thought's enobling trend, 

Abjure the livery of wrong and crime. 

And bring to festivals a blessed end. 

Matron of Flowers 

Exquisite charms, which once in paradise 
O'ercast all fruits and flowers, a feast for two, 
Have here their counterparts, but million eyes 
Glut of the extasies which they imbue; 
Bright roseate tints prevail, but they alone 
Do not adorn the vehicles at hand, 
But countless other specimen with tone 
Of dainty fullness crowd the viewers stand ; 
The fragrant gardens which incarnate pomp 
Of by-gone days created to amuse, 
Have met aimihilation in the slump 
Of time's decay and withered with their hues; , 
The riches of my regions are untold, 
Exhaustless are its stores of beauty still, 
And will remain till ocean's waves have rolled 
Their briny surplus o'er the highest hill; 
The recompense of effort is secure; 
Within the vast display which men have wrought, 
We hope results thence issuing will endure. 
And all its pages breathe but living thought ; 
Beside the arch of triumph, upon beam 
Which rage exposed to restless, sauntering feet, 
There, ere the sun can rise, an ideal dream 



— 73 — 

Will lead its phantom children to a seat; 
The friend of flowers loves what is sweet and fair, 
And from their leaves, as nature chiseled them, 
Draws forth some wondrous tales, with equal share 
Of love and worship for each perfect gem. 

Matron of Fragrance 

Sweet smelling- odors permeate the air, 
And bounteous fragrance floateth everywhere; 
The bells in yonder tower with resonant peal, 
When put in motion, strike discerning ear; 
But bells of flowers with tones of sweetness steal 
Into the nostrils and spread lingering cheer; 
The sense of smell, if sound be lulled to sleep, 
Remains sufficient worthy fruits to reap; 
What kindest nature molded into shape 
And left endowed with kisses of the night, 
Exquisite in its charms, cannot escape 
The destiny ordained for man's delight; 
A fair reminder they of kindled deeds 
Wliereon all love her carion children feeds ; 
And since all things are odorous in their prime. 
So deeds auspicious, or of strenuous care, 
Will, like the severed flower, with scent sublime, 
Pant with the summer-dreams in fragrant air; 
They who have known the scent of gleaming grass, 
And who through seas of living odors pass. 
May hear the knowing knell that lilts the soul 
Beyond the reach of crucial fright and strain. 
And see ephemeral beams precede the goal 
Which every lisping promise will sustain. 

Matron of Diamonds 

I tricked many sunbeams in earthen pouch, 
And placed them together beside my couch ; 
Then, lulled in the quiet rest of the night. 
The muscles relaxed, but phantoms of light. 
Though cased and secure, were flitting in dance. 
And troubled my dreams with pressing advance; 
In beauteous colors, which rainbows display. 
They twinkled and flitted upon the way, 
And metamorphosed with moisture and clay 
Contained in the pouch when going astray; 
They whirled and rolled without end and — ah well 
Congealed soon were bounding upon the shell ; 
Then, startled, I woke with measureless thought 
Of valuable treasure in humor caught; 
I opened the shell, and a lustrous stone, 



— 74 — 

Beautiful, precious, appeared to have grown; 

Multnomah its name, I found that the gem 

Itself was a mai'velous diadem; -t. 

It sparkles with life, and glitters with fire. 

And carries the soul o'er crevice of ire; 

And ever thereat with happiness smile 

The sweet, beaming faces delivered from guile ; 

In praise and delight and laudable song 

Life's visions and dreams are wafted along; 

And soar to heaven's perspective and find 

All doubt and despair left sinking behind. 

Matron of Pearls 

With opalescent gleam I enter here, 
And crave your favor, wai"der of this sphere, 
In this glad hour; great lansoms have been wrought 
In ages past with what discerning thought 
Deemed matchless pearls ; exchanged as priceless pelf 
When greed or grief, each loathsome in itself. 
Found the occasion, from their native haunts 
They carried the delight of liveried taunts 
To guarded halls, and with translucent glee 
Held eyes enthralled. Where broken by the sea 
An inlet formed, or on extensive bay 
The chopping waves or whitecaps spread dismay 
In driven storm, beneath the whii'iing foam. 
These mellow tear-drops have their native home; 
Pure as the crystal dew, no slimy stain 
Can mar the throat that wears the jewelled chain 
Therefi-om arranged; the loveliness of earth 
Left precious promise in their natural birth ; 
And throughout time all peoples sing their praise, 
And dress theiy nature in delightful lays. 

The Oracle 

Man is the child of chance ; his life in cast 
On atoms shore which sometimes may incline, 
Through labors of the present and the past. 
To form a regal future neai- the brine ; 
The days are heaving with the drastic care 
For his subsistence, which surrounds his deeds 
With ti-ansitory forms, or will prepare 
A train of wakeful moods for daily needs; 
No day arrives to ever be the same 
Of that before ; and as the minutes pass. 
They murder thought's progenitors that came 
With haunting vigor from earth's moldering mass, 
Save here and there on pinions of delay 



— 75 



The visions will survive, and prone forestall 

Their concrete loss upon the crystal way 

Where memory's pictures or illusions fall ; 

And circumstance, beside the wooded road. 

Or where the throngs are jostled by the score, 

May seize the blunt betrayal of a toad 

As the incipient cause of peace or war; 

The wiles of statecraft weave a tiny thread 

To seal a bag of spoils, a fateful boon, 

And in sad innocence enjoin the spread 

Of bulky shadows from the rounded moon ; 

But human pride will recognize no need 

Of limits that define his gross demands, 

Which with exultant ease the bounds exceed 

That modesty has marked with pointing hands ; 

Since all must perish, every path is vain 

That leads not to an honorable tomb; 

All earthly joy is brief, and crying pain 

Will dog man's footsteps till he meet his doom ; 

If he be miser, or of those who prey 

On hallowed innocence, the hoard of time 

Will bring but sorrows for the reckoning day, 

When fraud and vanity sink in their slime ; 

And those whose powers of marvelous intellect 

Make plastic what their will directs to be, 

As well as meaner minds fail to erect 

A saving barrier round their destiny; 

Fame lingers in the contemplative mind; 

The rich and proud go swaggering on their way; 

But never man to sordid things inclined 

Leaves worthy trace or record of his day. 

Father Time 

In fullness of its time a babe is born ; 
For all the world the sacred mite arrives. 
Though gilded hall or hovel it adorn, 
A curse or blessing to its parents lives ; 
Then time begins, indulging no delay, 
To shape its pliant limbs and give it strength ; 
Parental care and fondness of the fay 
Will cradle it to healthy stage at length; 
Thereon the mind expands ; with syphoning force 
It draws exti-aneous verities so nigh 
As if all emblems could forgo their source 
In compound lessons never doomed to die; 
Kind nature lends a sweetness to the child 
Perennially fresh ; sometimes till age 



— 76 — 

Of puberty arrives, when currents wild 

And st)'ong-er impulse rushes on the stage; 

With training come the days designed to teach 

Obligatory duties, and prepare 

The pupils for life's burdens that will reach 

To full-blown satisfaction joined with care; 

And when the days of love's delights arrive, 

The brain is giddy with the lurid flame 

Of craving instinct; but its memories thrive 

On grave desires of a coarser jiame; 

Throughout the day the phantoms come and go; 

With sugared happiness they touch the core ; 

From every footstep does the promise flow 

That hoiX!s will be attained unknown before ; 

And man will venture with the tidal-course 

Of wavering fortune till he win or lose; 

What can he win, what lose, what is the source 

That renders shapeless methods so profuse? 

He strives foi- place and honor, or for gain 

To mark his shifting paths so drear and dark; 

The paltry prize of days will he detain 

At which on journey's end the dogs will bark; 

Sometimes desires will sanction what the feet, 

Because of obstacles, must aye forego; 

And feverish hands demurely then entreat 

The crumbling substance at the base below; 

He whimpers when the shell-games do expand 

To flagrant malapertness on the folk, 

Yet bears himself a distaff in his hand 

To weave the threads that bind their chafing yoke ; 

'Tis pleasure ever, pleasure in galore. 

That points to the abysmal trough of deeds, 

W^here grewsome mixture of the days before 

Apart from hindrance unto salvage leads; 

Contriteness has a mask which hides a whim 

That from sepulchral silence grew apace, 

A straight deportment will the cause bedim 

Which foul demeanor herded with disgrace; 

Time-sei-ving jades are they who know no bounds 

To their fastidious armament or choice; 

And tasks prevail which in their speeding rounds 

Of faint accomplishments long swell the voice; 

But nevermore can he withstand the days 

That bring the shock of dissolution home; 

And midst his fatal quest the corse decays 

To be bequeathed unto the lifeless loam; 

What then avails his putrid transport's gleam ? 



— 77 — 

The end enfolds a wilderness of gloom ; 

Which mortal power is wanting to ledeem, 

With senseless chatter in her empty womb; 

Some, ere their days are full, with heedless pace 

Traverse life's desert in a mirthful mood; 

And others, circumspect, allotted grace 

Enjoy till drying bones subvert their brood; 

But soon or late they all lie down to sleep. 

Secure from labor in eternal rest; 

The tensive wounds which troubled mortals reap, 

The wracVdng pains which many souls infest. 

Are hushed in silence ; and the beaming eyes 

Are closed within their sockets; and the voice 

No longer will in modulation rise. 

Or ear catch echoes wherein to rejoice; 

I govein all; the fatal die is cast 

To press its seal upon departing time ; 

And mortal being, as he gasps his last, 

Leaves little to consign to realms sublime. 

The Fates 

Many threads, by reason molded, 
Tiny, strong, or plain, or dyed, 
Hold life's fabric close enfolded, 
That its purposes abide. 

Where in azure-hues and rapture 
Realms as these lie beauty-crowned, 
Webs of truth, designed to capture 
Hapinness, i>ervade all sound. 

From the season's glad proceeding 
Grows the humor of the year; 
And the springs of joy are speeding 
With their placid flow of cheer. 

Egoism 

The people massing on the street 
Have come to view a merry show; 
To see the actors who bestow 
Much time and labor that is meet. 

Adorned I come v.ith greatest care 

To leave an impress of my worth ; 

May the occasion bring the mirth 

Which pleasure's hands thought to prepare. 

Some will perhaps their joy conceal, 

Or even censure the display; 

But I am certain my ari-ay 

To great distinction makes appeal. 



— 78 — 

Lumberman 

Behold the emblems of my vast display I 
Where mig-hty forests still hold silent sway, 
Its monarch s we with ax and saw assail, 
And down to mills transport that they avail 
For diverse needs ; when into lumber made 
All turn to use according to their grade; 
For various structures, window-sash and door, 
For fixtures, shelving, fui-niture and floor 
This product is employed ; kind nature here 
Provided an abundance for this sphere. 
And we enjoy the bounty; it is said 
For many decades it will make us bread. 

Horticulturist 

Look ye upon the precious, grand selection 
Which earth bestows upon us in perfection; 
How luscious are the fruits! Each ruddy cheek 
Conveys a message though it cannot speak; 
All who have of their juiciness partaken 
Know naught of hard gastritis, or the pain, 
Which flesh-pots with their savor will awaken 
From fattened animal by precept slain; 
We nurse the tree with tenderness for years 
When rising sap its sturdy trunk uprears; 
Around the roots plow we, and wasting limb 
For sunshine's access and for profit trim; 
Behold these nuts! The food within their shell 
Is predigested, ready for a meal ; 
Their use to savage instinct bids farewell. 
And soon inoculates a gentler weal. 

Music 

' ' Trip, trip, trip; 

Softly the strains are rolling along 

Of zither, of clarinet, flute and song; 

Echoes are heard; 

Huri'ah is the word 

Tumbling intense from the animate throng; 

Trip, trip, trip ; 

Wrapt with remembrance fond sweetheart of thee. 

All doubt and despair must flee; 

With delight we tether 

Boundless worlds together; 

Trip, trip, trip. 



— 79 — 

Art 

Newborn floweth inspiration 
From the torn Pacific slope, 
Meeting- ideals of the nation 
At the golden gate of hope. 
Up from caverns deep, appalling 
Echoes roll for evermore; 
Vibrant notes are slowly falling 
Upon quiet, hazy shore. 
Out of ocean's past a laden 
Caravan is resting here ; 
Waiting, like a blushing maiden 
For maternity's career. 
Through the future's twilight coming 
March the days with wreath in hand; 
Mystic voices, sweetly humming 
Songs divine, theii- sweep expand. 

Poesie 

Silver-threaded, heart-embedded 
Shouts and whispers nurse the muse; 
Form-enshrining, meter-twining 
Lines their cadenced life infuse. 
Mind-enthralling, sense-appalling 
Lyric children woo the night; 
Earth-delivered, heaven-shivered 
Strains of beauty seek the light. 
Onward-leading, ever-speeding 
Force dramatic fills the day; 
Truth-enfolded, custom-molded 
Flows on sweetest minstrel-lay. 

The Politician 

I say to all : beguile the June-tide hours 
With frolic, sport and song; the people's powers 
Are not expressed in happier vein forsooth ; 
All deeper matters, which the kernel's truth 
Of things administrative would reveal 
Will be forgotten ; and I love to feel 
That men consent to follow where I lead; 
That I have writ the doctrines which they read; 
And render, while I feather my own nest, 
No service other than of their behest. 
The Pippin 

Throughout the days of this hilarity 
But greater business shall my rriotto be ; 
From everywhere have people flocked to town; 



— 80 — i 

Their needs are many ; shoes, or shirt, or gown • i 

I fain would sell them — anything they want — 
And scoop in shining shekels with a grunt. 

The Wizard 

1 love the truth, the passion-driven tribe 
Of ceaseless verities, and them inscribe 
Upon the patient pages ^^■hich the eye 
With industry may read and hand apply; 
Of chronicles at home and from abroad. 
Of homicides and culprits overawed, 
Of birth and marriage, festivals and death. 
And earthquakes, peace and war, and tempests breath 
Are columns written; many markets send 
Their nervous bond quotations without end; 
The bouts of jackanapes and whirling fuzz 
Of players and professors make a buzz; 
And satires, miracles and things profound, 
'Mong jargon's melancholic flings abound. 

Truth 

Naked truth may never fail 
Falsehood's armor to assail ; 
Like a giant, clad in mail. 
It Vvill conquer and prevail ; 
Follow every Clan-A-Gael ; 
Temper ardor's thrilling tale; 
And when nights the daylight trail, 
Wrestle with the devil's gale. 

Honor 

The sense of justice will the good restore 
By chaos seized ; and honor's wings outsoar 
The ci'awiing reptiles, which with baited prey 
Can speed unruffled on their dismal way. 

Prudence 

Prudence with a frugal mate 
Coveted a large estate ; 
Eai-ly, late and time between 
They were at their labors seen. 
Watching with the utmost care 
They evaded every snare; 
Never ill from far or near 
With their luck would interfere; 
Every treasure known to man, 
Mind and heart did freely scan ; 
And the fruitage of the earth 
Chased away the phantom dearth. 



— 81 — 

Knowledge 

Throughout the ages, dead and still unborn, 
Within earth's temples, of redundance shorn. 
And throughout halls, in echoes and in sound. 
Force, the mysterious, globe and heaven-bound, 
Without remissness was, and is to be. 
The life-propeller of humanity; 
And if man pry with aptitude and zeal 
Into her glorious chambers where appeal 
For pleasant, useful gifts in sign or word 
Of strange solemnity is daily heard. 
He may redeem the race from want and care ; 
With treasured riches may disperse despair; 
Beside gi-een pastures range the weary soul, 
And cherish knowledge as the highest goal. 

Power 

The sinewy arm, direct or indirect, 
May shape great monuments, and them erect; 
The fertile brain engendei- for account 
New means, ne\v vigor from its flowing fount; 
This planet be subdued, and man perforce 
Gain access to each transcendental source ; 
Yet like a drooping plant in desert waste, 
Like dreams by harsh reality erased, 
Like unsound threads upon the reeling spool. 
Like agitated stench of turgid pool, 
Ls life on earth and in the spheres above. 
Without the power of all-pervading love. 

Peace 

In turmoil's cavern dwells the scornful dame 
Whom folly mated unto hatred's flame, 
To bring forth misery ; not far away 
Unnumbered footprints on the sands betray 
The wandering forms that sought out blessed peace, 
Which reared a temple, and with golden fleece 
Bedecked her sanctum, where with solemn rite 
All pilgrmis kneel and penitence recite; 
Within a circle, innermost from sound. 
And upon pedestal above the ground, 
From tiny spouts refreshing waters flow 
Incessantly to trenchant base below; 
Here linger they who flee contagious strife. 
Who know the empty worth of blatant life; 
And in surcease sip evermore their fill. 
Until the evening dawns and all is still. 

(Exeunt) 



— 82 — 
A lonely chamber. 

Manghetto 

With crushed ambition but a puny speck 
Is mortal being 'midst his fortune's wreck ! 
My boyhood days, so humble and so bare 
Of late affluence, had of joy to spare; 
Satiety of station, wealth and fame, 
Now fan remorse into a horrid flame; 
And hideous night, so black, devoid and drear, 
Holds me awake with dragons of my fear; 
All solace is denied; the days are stale, 
And life is forfeit to their constant wail ; 
Ah, woe is me ! Where lies the secret coast 
Whence sojourn adverse warriors round the host; 
Where upon pressing earth, on sea, in air, 
Is power concealed we long for to despair? 
What can it be, whence is it, wherefore here, 
This utter loneliness, this dirge of fear? 
My vitals burn with anguish ; torment, dread, 
Unto my brain with rapid pace have spread ; 
And nowhere light, new hope, or means of joy. 
Are mine to seize and henceforth to employ ; 
Ah, woe is me! Can I the spirit call 
Of a departed friend, and disenthrall 
My now imprisoned heart? O, Muspah hear, 
Hear my lament, and counsel as a seer! 
Essay to break the bars that hold thee fast, 
And on my misery let thy gaze be cast; 
Hear thou my voice in the great world beyond, 
And somehow, somewhere to my prayer respond. 

Muspah (An apparition) 

Is this the stall which unpropitious hour 
Has contemplated for her vernal dower! 
Is this her charge! That dark, distorted brow. 
Claims it Manghetto whom I knew ere now ? 

Manghetto (shuddering) 

All things are naught ; too intricate the strands 
That muster progress as our life expands ; 
Secure is nothing; only fixed is change; 
What now we prize, tomorrow will estrange; 
What yesterday was honey-dew and joy. 
To-day will mimic oi- perchance destroy ; 
Is life worth while ? The query does embrace 
Creation's bounds in earth, oi" time, or space. 



— 83 — 

Muspah 

Yourself must answer it. 

Manfthetto 

My strength has waned, 
And will, and heart, and mind to doubt constrained: 
Thoujyht upon thought has gathered for the day 
But shattered hopes and pilferings led astray. 

Muspah 

You breathe and live. 

Manghetto 

Life registered by breath 
May, quite unknown, be but a step from death ; 
Once life had meaning ; action, abstract power, 
Lay tensile for the culminating hour ; 
Thought crystallized an earnest, firm campaign 
To rise above the crowds who but attain 
To mediocre station. 

Muspah 

. Ease your mind. 

Manghetto 

•The harvest-sheaves to great success inclined; 
Wealth, prestige, power rolled daily at my feet; 
My sway touched many men and it was sweet ; 
Of rumbling variance there was never lack 
Among the thoughtless when they turned their back; 
And envy's champions with a mess of swill 
Sought oft to start the wheels of rancor's mill ; 
And former friends turned foe because success 
Strode past their likeness with confounding stress. 

Muspah 

Does no regret your present thoughts concern ? 
Manghetto 

I to the past would nevermore return ; 
Too quaint is all its clamor, and dismay 
Bears ever down with avid, reckless speed ; 
I to discern the weak gave never heed; 
And trying labors fostered no decay; 
Nor could I seize the power to long control 
Those who their rights and liberty extoll, 
Though too indefinite these phrases sound 



^ 84 — 

To knowing men; T found and left them bound 
In their own snares, and without stain of blood, 
Or just reproach, sought daily my own good; 
Yet icy discontent has fettered me 
With these and other things ; I would discard 
All this dissension, and from life so hai'd 
Draw trivial qualities to set me free; 
Conjectui-e pi'obably can find a flaw 
In my demeanor toward unwritten law; 
But lex non scriptae is in scope too void 
To find its portions as a norm employed; 
And though I now recanted, all in vain 
Were the redress I thereby could obtain. 

Muspah 

Go on. What else ? 

Manghetto 

An awry shade lies spread 
Most everywhere; the moral sense is dead, 
Or grossly dormant ; pleasure-reeking bogs 
So many tread whom artless pedagogues 
Taught years and years; quite dauntless is the search 
For flitting prey; and men their life besmirch 
With wastrel taint; their pastime is excess 
Of mongrel turbulence; and to transgress 
With baseless slander 'gainst an honest name 
Is deemed conducive to a day of fame. 

Muspah 

'Tis false success which they adore. 

Manghetto 

And I 
Think false success a bastard and a lie; 
I might have given aid to those infirm 
In toil and struggle; but no simple worm 
Found I as worthy, or who'd render thanks; 
They lather would repeat than know their pranks. 

Muspah 

All this was known before ; a constant aim 
For truth and righteousness can but acclaim 
Your faith in man ; how comes it that distress 
Has all engulfed you? 

Manghetto 

Not the sordidness 
Of staggering crowds has burdened me with grief; 



— 85 — 

A way would op'n for their and my relief 

If there was need ; united have I been 

For years to one than whom beloved no kin 

Or friend so dear ; nothing to assuage loss 

Has chance turned hither with a wayward toss; 

We parted, and remained unreconciled, 

Since she insisted not to bear me child ;_ 

Assembled now are curried hosts of pain, 

Whose parley hath no tolerant refrain 

As erstwhile heard; no longer can I bear 

The awful heaviness of daily care; 

The fearful spectres with a hideous train 

Press all too terribly through blood and brain ; 

Would that a mountain crush me with its weight, 

And give release from lot so desolate! 

Since scarce I pity showed upon my way, 

Must frenzy now my naked conscience flay? 

I struggle, but am torn by gloom and fright; 

The oil is low; extinguished soon the light! 

Muspah 

Poor, tortured soul! Manghetto, pray, resolve 
Upon redemption, and new hope evolve 
Through toil and labor — eft'orts that redound 
To mankind's weal ; your spirit must impound 
Harsh, domineering nature, and call forth 
The latent treasures of true moral worth ; 
Ephemeral too is pain, as joy unrolled, 
In due memorial ^vith all reverence told ; 
Repentence, sacrifice and noble strife 
Will speed you onward to man's sovereign life; 
Push on and on, until the other shore 
Receive you free, and eager to do more 

(Exit) 

Manghetto 

The shade has vanished; I am left alone 
To ponder well his deep, prognostic tone; 
A change is needed, change I shall exact. 
And twixt the world and me a role enact 
That knows no wavering ; if my faults are great, 
With service, sacrifice and rich estate 
I vet may build and cicatrize the sore 
That hampers mankind with forboding lore 

(Exit) 



— 86 — 

ACT V. 

The Indian Super-Sphere. 

Sqiiintum 

As human hearts beat everywheie the same, 
Its songs all glory, love and suffering claim 
As kin in motive, which nor time nor place 
Can curtail in its pathos, life or grace; 
I knew the ancient bards, and found delight 
In later poets who have sung aright 
Of earth and heaven, and on beaten path 
Laid prudent siege round the hosts of wrath ; 
I almost foundered in Mosaic law ; 
And worshipt all wherefrom good scholars draw 
Converged material ; wondered at the tale 
Of Adam and of Eve in Eden's vale 
The old world turns with fondness to its lore; 
But in the new 'tis juggling with a boar; 
It lacks in masters who with spark divine 
Will search the depths of its reposing shrine 
For unnamed beauties ; needless to disdain 
What other worlds bequeathed in joy and pain; 
But many children of the native muse 
Despair of finding balsam for the bruise, 
Which they inflict who often turn to sneer 
At craftsmen who their onward journey steer 
O'er the poetic sea; the paunch well kept 
Rejects the call; nor hears it the adept 
Of gross licentiousness ; true bards alone 
Annoint a nation ; their conserving tone, 
Which tells the slave how freedom sets him free,' 
Hath joined the boon of praise and constancy; 
Their clarion notes of liberty rebound 
Where peevish money-sharks roll stifling sound ; 
They leave a sane survey where neif despair 
Chains acrid partisans to heavy care. 
Perhaps I roam too far ; these scenes obscure, 
Like fancy's children, ever onward lure; 
I recognize no landmarks round about; 
These wild retreats all penetration flout; 
Just to explore I strove to reach this bourn. 
And now a helper need to leave ere morn; 
But see ! A forward spirit speeds this way ; 
I will detain him on his far survey, 
And pry him for the knowledge which abides 
In these great plains, these vales and mountainsides ; 
Propitious horoscope : it seems to be 
Kind Tillicum, the son of Illihee. 



— 87 — 

Tillicum 

The most is least advanced, the least the most; 
Fast interchange gives pleasure to a ghost; 
All scenes affect him; either less or more 
Drawn on, repelled, must he all things explore; 
Inflexible is heaven and the earth 
To compass all with juvenescent birth; 
The macrocosm of life is to be found 
By him who would his happiness compound; 
On yonder peak I set my present goal. 
Whence to survey each ranged, projecting knoll, 
Unless this hovering spirit me detain 
Till discourse charm the echoes of the plain. 

Squintum 

Since I first knew that here the tilting world 
Assumed its shape, and earth her life unfurled 
Within these regions, I these gorges hoar 
And shadowed thickets with much zest explore; 
But who will ravel every secret thread 
Of twilight history at the fountain head? 
It would boost my delight to fathom here 
The first beginnings of this earthly sphere; 
So, Tillicum, if thou be versed to tell. 
Let due enlightenment the clouds dispel. 

Tillicum 

When first the great Intelligence did name 
The destiny of earth, her rabid flame 
Died 'neath the mist ; the devils in despair 
Held one great carnival to seize their share ; 
Up where yon Oregon crowds through the gorge, 
Loud, fiery anthems did the devils forge; 
On either side their sputum was so vile, 
As to impregnate every green defile; 
They left an ogi'ess, old Quoots-hooi there 
For vigil's shift in their deserted lair. 

Squintum 

A fitting place for such mischievous band, 
Which might return and further waste the land ; 
These pillars reared on megalithic base 
Pass clear of censure, but not so the trace 
Of hell's own imagery upon these banks. 
Or monstrous objects exiled from its ranks; 
But where the forks break jointure there the plain 
Is mantled with a copious miseellane. 



Tillicum 

Here old To-Olux came, sweet nature's spawn,. 
Came as the southwind, wanderer of the dawn, 
A weary trail lay I'ound him everywhere; 
And morning worlds awoke \\ith stii'ring air: 
To-Olux asked the giantess for food ; 
This dowered subject of a keyless bi'ood. 
However, lacked; but pointing to a net, 
She bid him fish to satisfy his let 
Of need and more; he dragged awhile and caught 
A little whale or grampus, which he brought 
Upon the shore; actecean in design 
This dolphin bore a spout-hole near the spine; 
The teeth were conical, and glistening gave 
A horrid aspect to its snapping cave; 
To-Olux drew his blade ; in this espied 
Quoots-hooi with fair warning to him cried 
To take a shaipened shell and split the back 
By downward stroke; but he made bold attack 
With crosswise cut, not heeding what she said, 
And to some blubber greedy onslaught led, 
When lo, behold! the fish became a bird, 
Immensely large, whose flapping wings were heard 
Around the trembling earth, and which obscured 
The splendid orb in broadest heav'n immured ; 

Squintum 

True signs of Paleozoic age abound 
In sedimentary rocks that line this gi'ound ; 
The limestone lentils, quartzite, mica slate, 
And schist, all in great metamorphic state, 
Precisely indicate the world of stone. 
When earth and water did with birth-pangs groan; 
But Mesozoic time, or likelier yet, 
The Tertiary did all life beget 
Wherein To-Olux and Quoots-hooi found 
The germ of miracles, the tread of sound. 

Tillicum 

Both were amazed, and each with eager eye 
Pursued the thunder-bird up in the sky, 
And named it Hahness; soon with rapid flight 
The bird turned northward till it could alight 
(For safe retreat beyond the reach of prey) 
On mountains called the saddleback to-day. 



— 89 — 

Squint um 

All elemental life no doubt depends 
For a beginning- on its destined ends; 
Men speculate, or theories erect 
Where understanding fails truth to detect; 
Sometimes they miss, again they hit the mark ; 
But true or false, with twitter they embark, 

Tillicum 

To-Olux and the ogress undertook 
A northward journey then, far past the crook 
Where Hahness nested; but the search was vain; 
Quoots-hooi fared the better of the twain : 
While picking berries in these haunts so drear — 
The jungle beautiful, dim nights compere — 
Far up the slope she found a brindled nest, 
Packed full of eggs, the which she to divest 
Of its fair contents gave no formal heed; 
She broke and eat them, and, with passing speed, 
Pursued her way to lower altitudes, 
And burdened earth with preg-nant interludes : 
Then man was born: this race of shifting fate 
Claimed at maturity its full estate; 
And when the brood continuance did acclaim, 
Quoots-hooi vanished, all except in name. 

Squintum 

Strange rendering this indeed of a strange tale : 
Man's life rolled up inceptive from the sea; 
An ogress shaped it in a dented vale, 
And nature's audit sent it forth to be ; 
One would not think it, for this broken sphere, 
Jurassic, Eocene, and what not here. 
Is mute and cold ; the augite andesites. 
The serpentines and granodiorites, 
And other igneous rocks will never tell 
Quoots-hooi's lineage, nor what her befell ; 
Genetic zones of compact rhyolite. 
And feldspar, hornblende, and sparse magnetite, 
Are quite promiscuous, but do not reveal 
The life that carries the creative seal. 

Tillicum 

We are not gifted with the broad command 
Of every knowledge; yet its borderland 
Lies open to explore ; it may be wise 
These various rocks and riddles to disguise; 
Or stretch discernment till the creviced gi'ound 
Heave up its secrets from the depths profound. 



— 90 — 

Squintum 

Was man Turanian, or of Cushite seed; 
Of black or white, or red or yellow breed 
So early born? 

Tillicum 

I only can reply : 
These mentioned shades all at one bound did cry 
For recognition. 

Squintum 

Did they ever name 
The Oxus and Jaxartes as of fame 
With rivers hereabouts? 

Tillicum 

I never heard 
Allusion ventured upon either word; 
And while aspiring to celestial glee, 
Terrestrial limitations cling to me 
As unto others of the roaming crew. 
Whose every step finds knowledge to subdue ; 
The thunder-bird, returning all too late, 
Found its fair nest in ruin's dismal state. 
And sought To-Olux for redress ; he-they 
Could never trace Quoots-hooi to her lay 
Though both returned each season to the north 
And scoured skillfully the ends of earth. 

Squintum 

But what of man, who meanwhile took his place 
Where cosmic breath could sanction the embrace 
Of nature's ai-m ? Did Sabian worship give 
Accord and dictum for its orb to live 
An higher power, and 'mong conception's shift 
With jagged monsters intersperse the rift? 

Tillicum 

So many things were ever sealed to me, 
And still remain, which thou throug-h inquiry 
Would fain command; beyond the ridges lie 
The verdant vales so pleasing to the eye ; 
See! if we lack ambition to transcend. 
No landscape splendors can our view distend; 
The Spirit, like the yet embodied soul, 
May wing its way successive to its goal; 
But militant perception must allow 
A wreath of knowledge for its tranquil brow; 



— 91 — 

Thy search is deeper, broader than I feel 
As mendicant to foster in the leal ; 
But Killaxthokle, the accomplished chief, 
May gTierdon fixed endeavor and belief; 
And therefor to his beat let's thread our way, 
That he thy quest appease and give it stay. 
(They pass through a gate to the presence of Killax- 
thokle) 

Killaxthokle 

Advance ye spirits, and unfold the quest 
That brought ye hither. 

Tillicum 

. Long may Cusha's crest 

En.ioy thy kindness! My companion here, 
In search of knowledge and a high career, 
Would scan the recoids which concern the best 
Of servant monitors that guard the west; 
And through their ministry annul the fear 
Which trials bring wherein sore tests appear ; 
I am unable further to impart 
The things to still the cravings of his heart ; 
So now may Squintum at thy hands receive 
The portions which perchance great ends achieve. 
(Pass Tillicum) 

Killaxthokle 

Hail, zealous soul ! If thou wouldst quickly glide 
Into thy zenith on the speeding tide 
Of gathered fortune, which is knowledge gained 
In numbered hours, and unto circuits chained, 
Thy zeal is naught, forevermore thy course 
Must vault thee upward to the primal source 
Of all perfection ; thou must always cleave 
To fitting service, until every sheave 
Assure reward. 

Squintum 

I recogjiize the weight 
Thy admonition pleads, and contemplate 
No other course; to render and attain 
With interchange of knowledge is a gain; 
Veiled in sufficiency are strains of lore 
Which step by step we master and adore. 



— 92 — 

Killaxthokle 

Discernment builds; the alchemy of thoug-ht 
Reflects the rule of three, and we are taught 
Three times in tree, and thrice the mystic three 
Unfold the vestment of their mystery; 
But lesser charters must precede the change, 
And shadow forth their worth, however strange; 

(Clamotomish and Chiltoc enter) 
These two are just in time; leceive your charge; 
With handsome measure his dim bounds enlarge. 
(Pass Killaxthokle) 

Clamotomish 

Time, which has no beginning and no end, 
Brought forth nine sons who were in Illihee 
The mighty men in whom lay to defend 
All sacred customs and rude liberty; 
Wise counselors they who did with care ordain 
For all an equal claim upon the earth. 
So that men always sustenance retain. 
Unlike some weanling proctored after birth; 
These thrice three sons still guide those who aspire 
To higher paths beside the murky mire, 

Chiltoc 

The aborigines took greatest care 
To lose no salmon heart, or feed it rare 
Unto a dog; the season's firstling they 
Did lengthwise cut and in thin flakes array 
To I'out the prospering augurs of return 
For schools of salmon to the ocean's churn; 
Some habits will expand and some contract 
Men's liberty, or rights to be and act; 
And oft mere idiosyncracies propel 
Unfathomed foolishness or freakish spell. 

Squintum 

Blest is the land that hath sons clean and strong 
Who valiantly dare to subdue all wrong ; 
Sons whom great sires have baptised with the zeal 
To give their hands and hearts for public weal: 
Aye, doubly blest if they prove wise and kind, 
And in their will reflect a noble mind. 
A nation, or a people to endure 
In truth and virtue must their deeds immure; 
Where wisdom's voice and counsel are unheard 
Decay or ruin is the final word. 



— 93 — 

Clamotomish 

It giew to be a custom in this region 
To shun the lodge of persons who had died, 
And all adhered who knew; their name is legion 
To whom the shades of mortal change applied ; 
The lodg'e was burned, or taken down and moved, 
Especially of those of hig'h estate; 
Their sickly slaves exposed, to rise improved, 
Or die, within the woods that held their fate. 
As usage bids sheer wickedness to pair 
With cowardice that bring-eth on despair. 

Chiltoc 

They had an awful, superstitious dread 
For human body numbei-ed mong- the dead; 
Nor touched it, nor would sometimes rites perform 
Of those who passed into the outer storm ; 
For thirty days those handling these could eat 
None of the sturgeon's or the salmon's meat; 
Strang-e sounding blasts most daily passed along 
Wherefiom grave treaties date and solemn song. 

Squintum 

Behold the tree bring forth its fruit in kind 
In varying sizes and in shades combined 
With bold extremes! Within the mundane world 
Are active men whose motives must be hurled 
Into a crucible ; but more than chance 
Conceived the fruit its issues will advance; 
What lies without is naught, but from within 
The cycles of all perfect life begin; 
Perception of the infinite is bare 
That strips the finite of its proper share; 
Change and condition leagues to joyous arm 
Once dreaded things, the seeming props of harm; 
'Tis come and go; alternate day and night 
Expose, conceal, and tripping hours delight 
An endless quest; the records of the dead 
Bind not the living, yet their work may shed 
Such light before that all who care can glean 
From those with profit who have quit the scene. 

Clamotomish 

They may teach one another; where the core 
Of true experience was not reached befoi'e 
All counts for gain ; the self-sufficient mind, 
Long since the loser, is but acid-blind ; 



— 94 — 

Forbearance heals; and where adherents sit 
For noble judgment they will peace beget; 
The peace of progi-ess with no signs of sloth 
That kill the sparks of fervency and growth, 

Squintum 

As like a spider in a cobweb fort 
Is battling with the cockroach and the fly, 
So man makes man a thing for spider-sport, 
And builds high ramparts to subdue his cry; 
He calls its progress if the tribes acclaim 
The cheats of fancy in the clan of men, 
Which reai-s the forts of an immortal fame 
On tricks and foils and quibbles of the pen. 

Chiltoc 

And yet sufficiency lies far away 
For most of them ; they pass along and say 
That life's enjoyment is to them denied; 
That fondest wishes are ne'er satisfied; 
That providential grace is hooded close 
With all things subject to their ruthless foes; 
That greater homage is their rightful due ; 
And that benevolence is like a shrew ; 
But standards vary, as the troubled gauge 
Of flux and flutter will beset the age; 
So it goes on, and, far from being wise, 
The genei-ations fit their lapse and rise; 

(Potoshee, Palisk and Quinolt enter) 
But close at hand are the succeeding three 
Who have a message to deliver thee; 
Sometimes we shall again be called together, 
But for the present we must chase the weather. 
(Pass Clamotomish and Chiltoc) 

Potoshee 

Whence we have come the murmuring waters leap 
Through broken regions ; where the banks are steep 
Large sumach shrubbery covers all the ground, 
Whereon fine stems as sharp as thorns abound. 
Which pierce the flesh and much like nettles sting: 
The devil's walking stick depicts the thing; 
We could remain no longer so remote. 
As pressing currents hushed each siren note 
And sound of joy. 



— 95 — 

Squintum 

What uigence could entail 
Such break of pleasure? 

Palisk 

A persistent wail 
Swept through the caverns; and from Shasta's spire 
Through Hebron and Tacoma flashed the ire 
Of vital force, which south from Adam's peak, 
Past Hood and Sisters unto Crater Lake, 
Caused vibrant ozone in a leaping streak 
Of vernal energy to join its wake. 
On earth men deem that spirits of the dead 
Are always hovering near, and on their head 
Pour the displeasure which the memelose 
Leash into fury : like a cognate fuse 
The strong commotion flickers in the dark ; 
And when the voice of plover and the lark 
Is heard to tremble, then the dead are nigh 
And whistle through their teeth, or in the sigh 
Of wind-stirred pine convey a weird command 
Touching their conduct. 

Squintum 

Fairy tales expand 
Jointly with superstition; rather slow 
Is truth sometimes to spread the russet glow 
Of its perfection; in the midnight hour 
Of blind perversion the discerning power 
Of hoar intelligence comes forth to seize 
The golden mantle of the freighted breeze. 
Wherein the messengers of dawn proclaim 
The day of knowledge in its purple flame. 

Quinolt 

We crossed the ridges for a splendid view 
Toward all the south ; here every gorge's hue 
Is mopish green; the sallalberry-bush 
Was prime of all ; and where the maples push 
To height and strength, we lingered to survey 
The panorama of the western grey ; 
Here many tales rose vivid to the crest 
Inscribed by age, now sounding like a jest: 
Time was when brothers, one of wizard art, 
Came from the north for clams ; a fatal start 
Befell the doctor's brother whoj too free, 
Waded the channel leading to the sea. 



— 96 — 

Where he was seized and swallowed as a prey- 
By a great monster; through the prompt display 
Of divination soon the wizard found 
The cause of absence; from the mountains round 
He summoned giants who bi'ought down huge stone 
And mighty blocks which, piled into a cone 
On top of wooden fuel gathered there, 
Were fanned and heated to a monstrous flare 
And dumped into the waters ; toward the sky- 
Rose clouds of steam, which left the channel dry 
And bared the monster; he with utmost speed 
Then killed it with his club and did proceed 
To cut its belly as to liberate 
His brother there within; in joyous state 
They then passed on, and w^rought the way along 
Such miracles as overawed the throng; 
But soon they met another who had power 
Greater than theirs who in propitious hour 
Converted them to stone ; two pillars stand 
Which yet commemorate the bold command 
Of the last wizard. 

Squintum 

With the ages hoar 
Runs kindred's rivalry and ceaseless war. 

Potoshee 

We passed the silex hills where all descried 
In nature's almanac is petrified ; 
Aye, where the natives roam who passing glean 
Skunk cabbage and wild berries, all too lean 
For season's fattening, yet for them enough 
Who love such grudgeons at the feeding trough, 

Palisk 

Afar proceeded burial rites of those 
Who steer to sea and in canoes dispose 
Of every corpse; or Digger's obsequies 
With prompt cremation ; or where lofty trees 
Stand witness to belief and practices 
Of earth interment. All this wilderness 
Hath trumps to play ; it suffers all the host 
To speed its purpose and sate every boast. 
Delight and joy attend the swarming crowds 
Who stand beside and aim to pierce no clouds 
Of thrilling thought ; their visions seek a shrine 
Of things material which may bend design 
A thousandfold; they always part their hair 



— 97 — 

Rig-ht on the top and comb it with due care ; 

And imitate the new, or don the dress 

Which outHnes charms and drapes mere nakedness; 

Or here and there some lounge at pleasure's hest 

And smoke the knuse to sweeten their lone rest; 

And watch the pel ton or the partlelum 

When reason shifts and horns sprout up in rum. 

Squintum 

Conceit, or pride, or simple vanity 
Trail happy patrons to their destiny. 

Quinolt 

With womanhood arrived the anxious stage 
That brought the process which a heathen age 
Called cleansing ; for the period of a moon 
The girls in question did forego the boon 
Of food in season; several times each day 
They bathed themselves, and hemlock in decay 
Served as an ointment for the glowing skin ; 
And when the south wind with an ominous din 
Drove overhead a moisture-laden train, 
No pretense for departure could restrain 
To-Olux from offense; their exit gives 
Him cause to summons Hahness on the cliffs, 
That he may shake his wings with thunderous roar, 
And with his eyes send lightning to their door; 
Or where their doings savor of delight 
Turn sweet remembrance into sorry plight. 

Squintum 

That youth be taught to later on succeed, 
Experience justifies with ample need. 

Potoshee 

Fixed in the people's minds lay heaping dread 
Of awful skookums, who their mockery spread 
Through eagle, crow, the blue-jay and the owl, 
Or other birds, and reptiles ever foul 
And slimy-shaped, whose every noise and move 
Did fears confirm and kindly hopes disprove. 

Palisk 

Time was when on the wings of magic charm 
A chief and wife, intent on doing harm, 
Brought lice among the people; they became 
Keen censure's target; in their ebbing fame 
An angered wizard did right speedily. 



— 98 — 

As they emerged from bathing in the sea, 

Turn them to stone; as louse-rocks are they known 

Unto this day, and zephyrs but bemoan 

Their awful fate. 

Quinolt 

The young men in their fast, 
Of three to seven days, with no repast 
Could be regaled; but water they were free 
To use in want; faithful conformity 
To ancient customs further did require 
A frequent wash ; and to provide a fire 
Of constant glow ; they also keep awake. 
And jump and shout, and divers passes take 
Through smoke and fire; to bring them joy and bliss 
They call and pray for their tamonawis ; 
And gradually, as nerves give way, they reel 
In phantom's realm ; and hideous visions steal 
Upon their fancy, till the tree-tops bear 
A monstrous aspect in pellucid air; 

(Chilate and Calathorstle enter) 

Our discourse is determined ; we depart 
With some reluctance, yet with happy heart; 
The weltering fragments of melodious skill. 
Imparted and received, in part fulfill 
Thy inquisition ; others now in wait 
May further mend the voidness of thy state. 
(Pass Potoshee, Palisk and Quinolt) 
Chilate 
The men of medicine betook themselves 
To drive out memelose, the roaming elves, 
Who prey on man when folded in the stress 
Of mortal ills; the doctors did impress 
All with their craft ; they rattled scallop-shells 
Like castanets, or the irregular bells 
Of slated glass which Orientals hang- 
Outside their door to cause a tingling clang; 
A chorus joined them pounding on the roof; 
They pressed man's chest as to augment the proof 
Of their great powers; clutched fists or made a scoop 
With hands together, as to catch the troop 
Of evil spectres, which they fortwith blew 
Into the coals of fire their fingers through ; 
And claimed to see the memelose who bid 
The patient follow to henceforth be rid 
Of earthly troubles; they, with fire aglow 



— 99 — 

In a clean lodge, 'niong many friends, would show 
That he had plenty ; crude employment they 
Thus did pursue to drive the sprights away. 

Squintum 

But anyone unequal to subdue 
The memelose, or ebb-life to renew, 
Exposed himself to censure as I wean ; 
Or maybe worse, if frusti'ate hope be keen — 
Such as long lingered in the trepid breast 
Of pristine peoples in the farthest west — 
To seek i-evenge for earnest, kindly deed 
That goes unrecompensed of nature's meed. 

Calathorstle 

Thou hast surmised exactly what befell 
The unskilled doctors who imposed their spell 
Their faith has vanished, it is trite to say. 
And all their records scarce adorn a lay; 
And it is well ; when the last line is wi-it 
Of what escapes perverseness bit by bit, 
The sifted i-emnants yet will carry more 
Than what is warranted in all their lore; 
All things exact are worthy to be told, 
And juvenescent will recruit the old; 
But crudity is tentative in worth. 
Though consequential be its dismal birth. 

Chilate 

In dark ravines upon the forest's bound, 
Where slimy lizards creep, a cress is found 
Which, pounded up and placed upon the skin, 
Will raise a blister as from deadly spin 
Of Spanish flies ; for headache or the eyes, 
Sore or inflamed, a glowing coal supplies 
The sought relief, if it a place bedeck 
On shoulders, temples or behind the neck; 
For diarrhea the remedy is tea 
Made from the young bark of the hemlock tree; 
The sprouts or leaves of raspberries in spring 
Most excellent results will also bring 
With chew or drawn solution ; if a joint 
Of legs or arms, or any other point 
Be sore from cold, crushed nettles mixed with grease, 
Or nettle roots boiled down, will bi'ing release 
From present pain ; the tinted polypod 
With sickle leaves, sweet licorice ferns, which nod 
,'Mong logs and trees as like a weird recluse, 



— 100 — 

Are oft employed for alterative use ; 

The salve from ashes of the wild-cat's hair 

With grease comming-led served for ulcers bare, 

Or open sores ; the lynx-skin also bore 

Some healing virtues in their fabled lore; 

White bryony and its most bitter root 

Are oft prepared and to their uses put 

For ague and the fever ; camomile, 

As yarrow, mint and rosemary, for bile. 

Or common colds, or carminative ends, 

With pressing exigence its use extends ; 

Still many others might I cite to thee. 

But present needs have their sufficiency. 

Squintum 

Thou speakest wisely. In the latter days 
Man's specie flourishes where it obeys 
'Instinctive calls; on necromancy's path. 
Or quackery's, but diabolic wrath 
Runs m pursuit; all nature does prescribe 
With hints galore; would that all folk imbibe 
Their gist and worth. 



Calathorstle 

Intelligence has grown 

To large proportions, and its aims condone 
Chance misconceptions, and the stalking role, 
Of ardent spirits who with pawn and toil 
Keep pressing on ; capacious deeds at rest. 
Which subtile minds awal;encd in their zest. 
Conceal the sparkling joy, the twinge of pain. 
That struck alternately their heart's domain; 
Yet force is old which from a doiTnant state 
Emerges heavily to culminate 
Jn brand new piping and a catching name, 
Which science loads with chronicles of fame; 
As deep and broad as ocean in its sweep 
fis yet the field where knowledge is to reap 
Uncounted victories; the past is borne 
On wings of progress to the present morn ; 
And to the vanguard of the marching host 
The future s aspect promises the boast 
Of force subdued, yet scorns a conquest which 
Confines to few the right to tread the bridge 
Of mortal chance. 



— 101 — 

Squinlum 

Glad tiding-s will innui'e 
To all the world when what is clean and pure 
Of heart and hand be written in the sign 
01" conscious equity ; one sacred line, 
Impelled by righteousness, maj^ draw a tear 
For bleeding sufferance that will blot and sear 
A page of wrong. 

Chilate 

Whatever has been, is, 
And shall remain, — the verities of this 
And other woi-lds ; — yet more shall come, shall be, 
Evolving out of time, from mystery 
Of barred ethereal realms. They'll meet depair 
Who in their craven heart pass by the lair 
Of boundless love; they never can rejoice 
Whose charity betrays the hollow voice 
Of tongue-compassion ; and all hope grows l§ss 
For those submerged in utter selfishness; 
And they who know not faith towai'd God or man 
But ruin trails amid their baleful clan ; 
They will be scattered with a heavy hand 
W^ho lie and cheat ; and with a warning brand 
Is the crew marked whose throat is raw with thirst 
For human blood. 

Squintum 

The world will move along 
Till all things manifest are doubly strong 
As those concealed; some simple threads of life 
Still goad creation into graphic strife; 
But where great pinnacles are climbed, perforce 
Their gaze sweeps broadly o'er the chasmy course; 
Not yonder flickering orbits can appeal 
To every age: nor change nor chance reveal 
A grasping hand so vain as to withdraw 
From grip and tackle of eternal law. 

Calathorstle 

A deep commotion bids us to disperse, 
And hence forego old secrets to rehearse; 
A joyous train, with light and solemn tread, 
Has swung aloft, by elip-coursers led. 
Into a council where a cavalcade 
Surrounds sojourners who are unafraid; 
And at the eastern gate another troop 



— 102 — 

Conducts a traveller whose reluctant stoop 
Proclaims the novice ; leading to the Dyke, 
Where criers, choirs, attendents and the like, 
Have gathered with their numbei's, red and green 
The portals stand athwai't the glowing scene. 

(Exeunt) 

An invisible choir 

Troth, the sacred, hallowed, golden, 
Men and women vow to keep; 
In their bonds, to faith beholden. 
Lodge rewards for them to reap. 

Heart for heart e:N;tendeth treasure 
In exchange of sapient joy; 
And delights in sorrow's measure 
Every bitter sting destroy. 

Nor a frown, nor flowing spittle, 
Augurs ill upon the way; 
Labor's burdens count for little 
Where but hope fulfills the day. 

Acts of kindness without number — 
Emissaries of the heart — 
Rouse from hibernating slumber 
Traits of high and noble part. 

Only love, the living, panting, 
Nimbly gliding to caress. 
Can divulge the deep, enchanting 
Secrets of the soul's recess. 

Hand in hand with exultation 
Peace and pleasure walk apace; 
And the voice of adoracion 
Gratifies a pining race. 

From the eai'th far unto heaven 
Sounds the bugles thrilling call: 
Unto love has it been given 
To dispel earth's cloying pall. 

The same choir 

Hail ! The sun descending 
Ci'owns the glowing west; 
Virtue's throngs attending 
Build a sylvan nest. 

Chorus: 
Gather the sheaves of fruition to-day ; 
Gleaners be up and awake ! 



— 103 — 

Cany your standard in festive array 
Though all the battlements shake. 

From compassion springing 
Floweth kindly deed; 
Loud with echoes ringing- 
Justice gathers speed. 

Chorus: Gather the sheaves etc. 

Fraught with stirring issues 
Life must run its course: 
Blood and bone and tissues 
Share its vital force. 

Chorus: Gather the sheaves etc. 

Killaxthokle 

The turrets stand deserted where the hour 
Drew vultures towards the carrion prey and dower 
Of desolation ; now their victim's fled, 
And as for them lies with unnumbered dead; 
The ghastly crew to ravage is inclined 
Throughout their days; sheer unto them resigned 
Is virtue, truth and honor where but chance 
Connects their bold career with circumstance; 
They fear not, seemingly, the fatal day 
Of retribution, though their conscience flay 
Their awful guilt, and gouge them with the need 
Of early penitence. A broken reed 
Was hurried in the grave ; and yet the soul, 
Its erstwhile animation, seeks a goal 
That hath no border here ; the final test 
1 Inclines her from infinity to wrest 
That sure abidance which the carnal earth 
May never know though it be drenched in mirth ; 
Now sadness is committed to the tomb 
Of its infernal substance; sullen gloom 
Is now forever sealed ; the reeking sty 
Of vanity no longer mocks the sky ; 
The cataclysmal process of the mind 
With all its issues has been left behind ; 
Eternal muteness has consigned the thrall 
Of fear and hatred to its charnel stall ; 
All that discordance knew, or kindled spark 
Of faint repugnance bid to disembark, 
'Is but a memory; in its onward flight 
The soul encounters the refulgent light 
Of love, and joy, and sanctity and bliss, 
Wherein eternity ne'er wanting is. 



— 104 — 

Tillicum 

To us beholden thou art fair, 
Dear spirit, wending through the air 
With purpose tJiat must lead on high ; 
'Tis given that ye may partake 
Of joys elysian, and awake 
J^f','l^elvs '■'.yni phonies which dormant lie; 
Through festival and song obtain 
Acquittal of remembered pain; 
The simple qualities of good, 
Which twixt the cradle and the grave 
Come forth of times misunderstood, 
Give hope unto earth's meanest slave; 
Be but thyself and tune and time 
Will usher in with voice sublime 
Reward of happy thought and deed ; 
Thy wistful gaze shall ever be 
An index to satiety 
Whence glory springeth as a ci'eed, 

A Candidate (Clara) 

The sun of holy joy has risen 
In splendoi' of eternal might; 
No longer shadows may imprison 
The hope and trust of life and light; 
The wails of sorrow cease, 
And all is rest and peace ; 
No shackles can impede my flight; 
Around me are the throngs careering 
With rapture and auspicious mien, 
Who, while forevei onwaid steei'ing. 
With pieciuus halo gird the scene, 
All things become divine; 
Great happiness is mine ; 
What lies before is ruby bright; 
[The mournful things of worldly mazes 
Melt surely into fervent love; 
And pious worship, songs and praises 
I{lmbrace infuiity above; 
A beauteous, constant zeal 
'Knows not the ringing peal 
Of heaviness of eai'thly plight. 

The same choir 

Soul in thy day rejoice! 
Kindled be merry voice. 
Solemn and pure; 



— 105 — 

Glory for eveiTnore 
Unto the weak restore 
Hope to endure. 

Waken with quenchless lay 
Peace and good will to-day 
All to persuade; 
Boundless celestial glee 
i^weeps on in haniiony, 
Grandly arrayed. 

May an immortal strain 
Unto the farthest plain 
Carry the sound; 
Brought on the rolling tide, 
Time and its fruits abide, 
Gathered and bound. 

Killaxthokle 

One who would master be must condescend 
To serve the many ; they who comprehend 
The public conscience for themselves may build 
A spacious mansion which is treasure-filled 
For days of pleasure ; but the selfish man, 
With all his lucre, will incur the ban 
Of bitter enmity, and hands of scorn 
Suppress his secret efforts to subora 
Affected unction; stubborn as his heel. 
Which many oft in innocence must feel. 
Is the aversion which with hatred's curse 
The sleeping sparks to conflagration nurse; 
And friend turns foe; and what seemed once a prize 
The tongue of gossip will antagonize; 
Though he should turn, but sorrow follows aft. 
And at his heart aims with its bitter shaft; 
Though he be penitent, doubt will obscure 
The recognition he would else procure ; 
'Tis night around him though his eyes be clear 
And through the clouds the noon-day sun appear. 

Tillicum 

On i-uin's pathway lay the fruit 
Which once enticed, then struck him mute. 
And claimed man debtor to the world; 
The habitudes of his success 
May finally end in distress, 
And into yawning chasms be hurled ; 
In divers ways aspiring aim 






— 106 — 

Confionts defeat, and every blow 
Is traced with ardor to the shame 
Which some insipid days bestow; 
The penalty is oft severe, 
Yet leaves unrecompensed the cheer 
Forever lost, or pain endured; 
To all who suffered, all who lost, 
And on life's troubled sea were tossed, 
A lasting' peace niay be assured ; 
'Tis well to seize, though it were vain. 
The problems which to life pei'tain;. 
'Tis well to strug-gle, and to wrest 
From passing days what seemeth best; 
But when to naught life's pulses fade, 
And ebbing tides bring near the doom. 
There yet remains beyond the tomb 
The realm of bliss to escalade. 

An aspirant (Manghetto) 

Delightful song hath greeted me; 
And pleasant spirits hover near; 
Thy speech, dear brother, charmingly 
Conveys the message I would hear; 
The human heart is frail indeed. 
And would succumb if not the light 
Of love eternal left the seed 
Of hope to guide it through the night ; 
The day hath come! The highest steep 
I may ascend, and ever choose, 
Whereof the spirits i-ecord keep. 
Truth infniite, and it infuse; 
Now be it granted for my sake 
And Clara's yonder, blessed soul. 
That we may jointly undertake 
The joui'ney to our heavenly goal. 

Song- of the Nine 

Triumphantly this message sped 
Of peace, the swift and golden. 
Unto the soui'ce and fountain-head 
Of trouble, long beholden : 
Be thy maw forever filled : 
Be thy voice forever stilled. 

The harvest time of joy is here : 
The thrilling accents flowing 
Throughout the vast, unmeasured sphere 



— 107 — 

These echoes are bestowino- ; 
May remembrance long retain 
Odors of the sweet refrain. 

The earth, which is a truceless vale, 
For every living creature 
Hath marked a short and narrow trail, 
And made herself his teacher: 
They who heed her counsel know 
Good and evil there below. 

Let pride be seized and evermore 
Consigned to burnished ocean; 
Let justice reign and every shore 
Receive her healing potion: 
For the dwellers 'neath the sun 
May exalting threads be spun. 

Let thought and speech and rule and law- 
Be born from meditation ; 
And mercy rather be a flaw 
Than stranger to the nation: 
Blessed are fraternal rites 
Which distribute their delights. 

And all who journey far and wide 

For intellectual treasure, 

For length and strength in onward stride. 

May they have fullest measure: 

Wisdom is but seated where 

Knowledge holds her golden chair. 

(Exeunt) 
END 



-^vg_5 



>v 



— 108 — 

RUNE HESPAR 

The legend which is here set down 
So meagerly with feeble hand, 
Comes from an alien fatherland; 
Thence from an unimportant town. 

The town is Heydon by repute, 
Where all took place what here is said; 
But if the name be fancy-bred. 
The narrative is therein mute. 

Old Satan is the bargainor, 
Who with a sly and cunning mien 
Steps unexpected on the scene 
To prick a soul and mark a score. 

Rune Hespar is the bargainee: 
But if the name be not exact, 
It cannot in the main distract 
The legendary harmony. 

May blessed sunshine follow thee. 
Fair i-eader, who this tale pei'use, 
And wist that ye can amply choose 
The best therefrom, and turn to see 

A mirroi' that, applied to life, 
Reflects the divers ways that win 
The battles which with all begin 
When cradled man first wails in strife. 

And midst the pressing energy 

That dwells with phantoms, the unknown, 

Nor lingering stay a lazy drone 

In murmuring inactivity; 

But find in themes to render toil 

A joy of heart and peace of mind; 

And let the eyes of humankind 

Behold the worth that wrought the spoil. 

Rune Hespar was a clever man; 
His neighbors said so in accord; 
They honored him, or made reward. 
With office in their thorpish clan. 

The acres, which he called his own. 
Were beautiful and not too laige ; 
They lay along a brooklet's marge. 
And bounded with a line of stone. 

In tillage of the land he won 
Of earth oft measures to the fill ; 



-_ 109 — 

Yet was his pensive heart not still ; 
Some plaintive burdens mischief spun. 

No cheering of a faithful wife, 

No prattle of a cherished child, 

Could break the clouds, so vveird, so wild, 

That came between his plans of life. 

We turn a little, then, to see 
What caused his trouble, all his pain, 
That in the sequel we may gain 
The core of all the mysteiy. 

Once he had heard the call afar 
To see the countries, see the towns 
Which, far away, in festive gowns, 
Excelled his own in bin and bar. 

He saw the Frenchman ; learned his speech ; 

Saw Italy and noble Rome ; 

And underneath St. Peter's dome 

He heard the pope ^nd prelates preach. 

A letter came, and in it lay 
Announcement that his father died; 
It troubled him, but he replied 
That he was yet resolved to stay. 

Time's impost called for his return 

(As heir with duties) to await 

The burdens of the old estate. 

Though here was much that he could leam. 

He failed to cut the bands in twain 
That held him bound to foreign sky 
Where nature heaves a breathless sigh 
And beauty's steeds soon start again. 

Another letter came to hand 

And told him of his mother's death ; 

With curses then he stung his breath, 

Yet lingered in this foreign land. 

Indulgent self refused to know 

That energies, if unapplied 

Where puckering fortunes may be tried. 

Will turn askance, and cease to grow. 

Time, though we reckon not the speed. 

Weaves taut its cords, and leaves the seal 

Of duty's deep imbedded heel 

Upon remissness of a deed. 

A war broke out; his country 's* call — 

Such was his nature — made him leap 



— 110 — 

Within her ranks, and staj' to reap 
The gloi-y that averts her fall. 

Then came the time that he returned; 
He found affairs of his estiite 
Fast dwindling- to a downward fate; 
Apallinji' were i-esults that burned 

With sealing- tread his quietude; 
But only by degiees they ciept 
Within his innermost and stept 
Upon the biidge of honor's lute. 

Must late deal harshly with a man 
JJecause his mind tui-ns to adore 
The fields of nature, or of war, 
And make sedition of his plan ! 

Must tempets come that man will fear 
The twittering birds within the street 
And shatter hopes forged in the heat 
Which boyhood's fancy found so dear! 

The people come ; ere long they die ; 
Ha\'e paiii and pleasure — such is man — 
While life endures its normal span, 
But that is all ; canst tell me why? 

The seasons yearly come and go; 
And 'tis the same, the same old world, 
Which Adam knew when fii-st he furled 
The fig'-leaf in his furbelow. 

Yet was he resolute of heart. 

And bravely ventured to reti-ieve 

Ebullient floods in time's reprieve. 

To fill the void upon his chart. 

'Mong' things that are as one with man. 

His love of life and self-respect' 

Are aptly agents that erect 

Sure stepping stones to dight his van. 

He found his mate, and it was well ; 

Advancement was the watchword now 

Upon the partly scuttled scow 

Whose anchor rusted in the dell. 

Yet evil piled up from its store 

When fire his abode destroyed; 

All expectations, newly buoyed. 

Ran lean and meager as before. 

The elements will sometimes aid 

The schemes of man and ease his care ; 



— Ill — 

But without warning they prepare 
Oft foul destruction in their raid. 

To Nathan, then, the moneyed Jew, 
He turned his steps to seek for aid; 
Who gestured much, and soi-e afraid 
Was he to seek another ckie. 

"A hundred Dollars will I lend," 
So said the Jew, "for ninety days. 
Ten Dollars fill commission lays. 
So ninety you will get to spend." 

He signed a bond, poor prey of worms, 
And ever after cursed the Jew, 
Who, as he found, would not renew 
The bond, except on hardei' terms. 

From one-fifth into two-fifths ran 
The discount of the Jew's demand. 
And, like the spread of sea-shore sand, 
Stretched out the reckoning of his plan. 

Thus we arrive within the time 
That Hespar was so much perplexed, 
With usury and Nathan vexed, 
And homage-free of things sublime. 

His fields could not divert his mind, 
Could not divest him of the pain 
That festered in his heart's domain 
And traced regret in trails behind. 

It was an awful, lingering pain. 
And sickened him in lengthened day 
Which flits in hollow night away 
And leaves reward that hath a stain 

The neighbors could not yet detect 
His passing elasticity; 
The outward signs still cii'cled free, 
And had no bondage to reflect. 

But inward gnawing took its course; 
The light of day made him a slave. 
And peace of night an errand knave, 
By circumstance and mental force 

Alone he sat one day for houi-s 
And brooded sadly on his plight, 
And in his mind blest any spright 
That would extend corrective powers. 



- 112 - m 

His fancy dwelt on liberty, 
And wished for blessings hid away ; 
For g-ifts to hold the world at bay; 
To turn the cabalistic key. 

And lo! A noise came from the door, 
And, looking up, he saw a man 
Who seemed a Frenchman, spick and span. 
Step cautiously across the floor. 

A bogey to his neighbor's mind 
The Frenchman is supposed to be ; 
But when they mutually agree. 
No rival can their friendship find. 

Now Hespar, stirred by keen suiiDrise, 
Fixed eyes upon the man he saw. 
And for an instant, like a straw. 
Was whipt by blasts of dread surmise. 

But only for an instant seemed 
The weak attack to hold him down ; 
And then his manhood, with the crown 
Of self-reliance, stood redeemed. 

"Bon jour, bon jour, mon cher ami," 
So said the stranger, bowing low. 
And unabashed,, with eyes aglow. 
Surveyed him with a look of glee. 

"Your just complaint," he said, "is heard, 
But powers whereof you have spoke, 
Much like a bond, a seal invoke. 
And compensation first conferred. 

If you are still intent upon 
The wish to have complete relief. 
Then speak the word, I shall be brief 
Relating what is to be done. 

These walls are safe; no other voice 
Can penetrate this chamber here. 
No other being interfere; 
The time is now to make your choice." 
"Aye, aye, good sir, can man prepare 
Decision, "then Rune Hespar said, 
"In which more mischief may be bred 
Then present burdens of his care ? 
But tell me who you be, and then. 
If I can get relief from you 
Revealed in any cogent clue, 
We mav recur to this again. 



— 113 — 

I have my troubles, that is true; 
1 am in debt and signed a bond 
On which I must ere long- respond 
And render payment to a Jew 

The future seems a little dark ; 
I do not know which way to turn ; 
The bond, I wish to see it bum 
And shrivel in a dying spark. 

This load lies heavy on my breast; 
But after all, I cannot say 
That it is flotsam swept away, 
For hope still lingers in my quest. 

But what is worse, a barn I need, 
A barn of size that may contain, 
Without much cramming stores of grain, 
The forage bales and bulky feed. 

It must be built that ample room 
Fall to the live-stock in the half. 
For horse and swine, for cow and calf; 
Besides an annex for the groom. 

Some forty ells must be its length. 
And twenty ells it should be wide, 
The doors in arch, so here abide 
A grace of form combined with strength. 

The upright timbers in the walls 
Must be of oak, with mortise-joint 
For ci'oss-beams, that the tenon-point 
Be pin-locked by the ell in stalls. 

The chambers which thus fore and aft 
Pierce outer walls are to be closed 
By brick and mortar, and composed 
With credit to the mason's craft. 

The roof of slate, the gable firm, 
And all quite finished for my use; 
If my conception be obtuse, 
The plans are born a living gemi. 

I know not when I may begin 
To rear this structure of my needs; 
The stress of war moulds pattern'd creeds, 
Yet loveless labor is a sin." 
"Your aim is high," the other said, 
"And in your mind the currents roam 
That wife and child shall have a home, 
And never be in want for bread. 



— 114 — 

It matters not what name I bear ; 
As Satan am I mostly known; 
If I am trusted never groan 
Is caused by me for mortal share. 

If you will pledge your soul to me, 
1 promise that you shall enjoy 
The means which here on earth destroy 
All species of your poverty. 

We'll draw a bond; the bond is sealed 
With blood that liveth in your veins ; 
The compact sealed, there but remains 
The promised part of Satan's yield. 

Propitious time ; pledge me your soul ; 
Your hopes then shall be born as new, 
And, like the morning's pearly dew, 
With sunbeams find a larger goal." 

"Ah, Satan, you have spoken well," 
The man replied, "but do explain, 
Will this expose my soul to pain 
And tortures of infernal hell ? 

How will I fare in the beyond, 
Beyond the confines of the grave, 
The destiny of king and knave, 
In case my blood had sealed this bond? 

And may not dreams infest the mind; 
The present be of no avail. 
And cold remorse turn kindness stale, 
Or tender thoughts be left behind?" 

"You should not question," Satan said, 
"Or reason on the unbeknown ; 
What you can hold shall be your own 
]f short of treason, and instead 

Of mortal fear, or human ill 
And cares, it may be granted thee 
To be as like an oaken tree 
That flourishes upon the hill. 

My realm has all the festive charms 
That linger on the battlefield 
Where warriors only step to wield 
A sober, thrilling sway of arms. 

My promise holds a large reward. 
For if you will it so to be, 
A prince upon the nether sea, 
My cohorts shall it so record. 



— 115 — 

No dreams infest the nether sea ; 
His regions never foam and fret 
With mortal waves of sore regret, 
And in his reahns the soul is free. 

The blessings which enfold the earth, 
Where man must for a time abide 
Twixt good and evil to decide. 
Fix limits from his day of birth. 

It rests upon himself that here, 
The stage of human tragedy. 
The evil turn to comedy, 
And vestal laurels grace his bier. 

No terrors need the grave proclaim 
To him who runs an even pace 
In course of his allotted space. 
And fixed as stars pursues his aim. 

The wain that bears his labor's fruit 
IViay be adorned for common use, 
And in abstention from abuse 
Excel in force the aimless brute. 

If man be slow to understand 
The light that is by nature fixed, 
The forces that may course betwixt. 
Will aid him who extends his hand. 

Some millions of the populace, 
From varied corners of this plane, 
In squalor's temple naked lain. 
Find no such offer to embrace. 

You are a favorite son, than whom 
No subject can this day transcend. 
And pride that gathers to your end 
Shall go with honor to the tomb. 

Reposing in a wanted sleep. 
When doors are barred to fretting sound, 
And silence clings to objects round. 
And ticking minutes slowly creep 

To die within their shadowed past, 
No sable spectres wait to haunt 
A healthy corse with dire taunt 
That bears its armor's daily cast." 
"Ah, Satan, I quite comprehend 
Your drift," replied the bargainee; 
"If mv demands not disagree, 
I shall not for so much contend. 



— 116 — 

My needs are simpler: to dispose 
Of all the claims, and nothing- more, 
Which now the Jew, as said before, 
May have against me to disclose. 

And in addition, be it clear, 
The barn, as heretofore portrayed, 
Which, if construction be delayed, 
Will much distress me, as 1 fear. 

These are the thing's, and these alone, 
That are the closest to my heart; 
May present claims in peace depart. 
And future lime endow its own." 

Then Satan said: "Well stated, friend; 
The bai-n, it shall be built to-night 
Yet ere the cock crows, 'fore the light 
Of I'ising- day an ai'row send. 

On stated plans it shall be built, 
And finished ere the morrow's dawn 
With potent vigor kiss the spawn 
Of blushing day, and view the tilt. 

They are indeed a valued gift, 
The things which ai'e your heart's desire; 
New hope will raise you from the mire 
Of melancholy's doubting rift. 

1 have the bond ; before I came 
I went to Nathan ; there I bought 
The bond, which I have hereto brought 
With due assignment in his name. 

1 shall destroy this bond, if you 
Will pledge your soul as I request; 
And you will learn, with this supprest. 
To soon forget the hated Jew." 

"You have the bond?" then Hespar groaned: 
"I know not if my doom be sealed 
In circumstances thus revealed, 
Or stand by mercy still condoned. 

The fateful hour now has arrived 
To press the cup unto my lip. 
With sorrow filled upon the trip 
Which T in foreign lands contrived. 
Then tell me, is there no escape. 
Can the event not be postponed ; 
And fortune's chance be newly throned 
In happy augur's starting cape? 



— 117 — 

Ah, wizard, will the poignant glee 
Of hell, with unrelenting speed, 
Destroy a man as like a weed, 
And cast the fragments on the sea? 

The sea where nature's porticoes 
Are polished by the lapping waves, 
And fragments find a thousand graves, 
To mingle with their stricken foes. 

How will they fare, my faithful wife 
And child, who are both innocent? 
Not for myself you need relent 
If loved-ones but be spared in life." 

"Conjecture of a dreadful fate," 
Thus, Satan, re-assuring, spoke, 
"For you and yours, it is the yoke 
Which you have power to abate. 

Your wife and child, quite well I know, 
They will be safe ; and they will cleave 
To you as long as heavens heave 
Their bluish beauty in a bow. 

As for yourself, do not forget 
The promises that I have made, 
Which do not in the least evade 
The future that is to be met. 

The means to live in comfort here, 
The powers that will extend their sway 
To hidden crannies on the way, 
Build mighty ramparts, tier on tier. 

Aye, ramparts that will long connect 
With passages of common good, 
All centered in the self-same hood 
Appearing to be circumspect. 

The compensation which you make 
Is ample, yet will not exceed 
The reparation of your need, 
The brittle fortunes now at stake. 

For be it known that Nathan's bond 
Will claim fulfillment to the dot; 
And sooner may your body rot, 
And in its wretchedness despond. 
Than that compassion be aroused; 
Distress of censure, may it find 
A preying lodgment in your piind. 
And fear of man be therein housed. 



— 118 — 

And may remembrance quail in dearth; 
The scenes of youth be not the same; 
And all the world attach your name 
To gi'ossest folly on the earth. 

If Nathan's bond be not fulfilled, 
Your wife and child will be a prey 
For pity's shambles; their dismay, 
In sorrow clad, will not be stilled. 

Yet is it time ; you may avert 
These conseciuences and the ill 
Which time is trailing- for the spill, . 
And from its bosom woo desert 

Do not delay; time's pregnant womb 
Has due appointment all prescribed ; 
With issue lost it can be bribed 
No more to resurrect your doom." 

"Enough, enough," then Hespar ciied, 
**Hand me the bond and 1 will sign, 
As you may indicate, the line 
By which the world can be defied. 

I do not wish to linger here 

In agony of mortal pain 

That grows and spreads, and must I'emain 

As like a furnace to my fear. 

I must avert all evil time 

Fi'om loved-ones, who are trusting me 

To make provision to be free 

Of trouble with its frightening chime. 

Hand me the compact ; may this day 
Admonish me to nobly strive 
With might and main to keep alive 
The kindness due them on the way." 

"Well stated, man," now Satan roared, 
"Here is the compact ; here a quill, 
Which you with oozing blood may fill 
From your left waist as it is gored, 

(The wrist was gored, whereon the drops 
Of living blood came oozing forth, 
Which, rendered solemn by its worth. 
Now gave the compact legal props.) 
Well done, well done; now sign your name 
Quite legibly here at the end; 
A master hand; why man, this bend 
Will bring your honor, wealth and fame. 



— 119 — 

(Nor did he hesitate to place 
His name upon the compact now, 
And with a relish, to avow 
Right human faith in Satan's grace) 

The deed is done, the compact sealed; 
Now Nathan's bond, here on this grate, 
A little flame condigns its fate, 
And what I promised is revealed." 

He turned to go, but at the dooi*. 
With hand upon the knob, he stayed, 
And then continued : "Undismayed 
Your spirit be as ne'er before. 

Be not afraid; nor mark the sting 
In words contained which neighbors say ; 
They will not share the mid-night fray, 
Nor hear the song the furies sing. 

And as the matter now is drawn, 
Souviens-tois, le grand roi, 
Mon bon ami, c'est moi, c'est moi ; 
Au revoir till morning's dawn." 



Didst ever lay upon the banks 
Where river flowed, and flowing gleamed 
With silver leaves and wavelets — seemed 
They not combined in wondrous pranks ? 

Then listened to its merry speech, 
Incessant flow of gurgling sound, 
Now high, now low, and always bound 
To be redundant in its breach? 

Perhaps you understood its tale, 
The tale the drops are wont to tell, 
Of wanderings through the limpid dell. 
Of ramblings through the verdant vale. 

Or how they travelled with the cloud. 
And fell upon a fai-mer's field. 
And prompted him abundant yield. 
Before they joined the present crowd. 

Their tale of cities, tale of towns; 
Of roamings on the fortress pike; 
Of races, peoples and the like; 
Of mankind's changing glee and frowns. 

And then i-emembei- how a child, 
With feet immersed in shallow brook 



— 120 — 

And dress above the knees, will look 
Upon the scene quite reconciled. 

Aye, reconciled in sweet content 
Unknown to manhood in its piime; 
Content oft said to be sublime, 
Sublime because so innocent. 

Sweet childhood's barge, of feather-weig-ht, 
Bestrides the rapids in its course; 
It has no anchor, but its stores 
All bear a label in the state. 

We pass along-. The stream has grown; 
So many streamlets, now combined, 
Roll on in unison to find 
Their common mother ; and their tone. 

Pronounced in rapid, striving pace, 

Is linked with day and chained to night, 

Anxiety itself in flight 

That brooks no trammel in the i-ace. 

We find some youths upon a barge, 
Equipt with rudder, spread of sail, 
And stout enough to breast the gale, 
Oft anchored upon either marge. 

The youths are tiained to make them keen; 
With masters round them who instill 
Hard themes of much required skill. 
They grow familiar with the scene. 

Here honest boy and bucaneer 
Have equal chance, if eciual strength ; 
They leap their scope at fullest length, 
Embracing all the front and rear. 

And hidden talents spring to life. 
Which might have slumbered otherwise, 
The powers causing mind to lise 
Supreme in peace, supreme in strife. 

We pass yet farthei'. Here perhaps 
We may perceive the throbbing pulse. 
Which, throbbing, will well nigh convulse 
The emptiness of empty gaps. 
Here man has raised his banners high, 
And has a busy time withal : 
He barely marks the reaper's pall. 
And reasons with the earth and sky. 
The stream is large, the stream is deep; 
Its flow is lighter, though not less; 



— 121 — 

A freighted barge scarce knows distress; 
Scarce gladness stops to wail and weep. 

Full manhood's vigor plies the stream, 
Whose paths obstruction may not know, 
And conscious in the current's throw 
Of fruitage balanced on a beam. 

We forge ahead. Now it would seem 
That all the flow had much decreased ; 
That even life had almost ceased. 
Just ere the ocean takes the stream. 

You tottering old, decrepid men. 
Why stand they on their barge — to bide 
The pushing currents of the tide? 
They never will return again. 

The barge of childhood and of youth. 
Of manhood's prime and elder age. 
Is all too frail in ocean's rage, 
Unless, indeed, its m^st be truth. 



Soon after Satan went his way. 
Discerning eyes, if there to see. 
Found Hespar in a reverie, 
With spirit cowed and held at bay. 

His mind was focused upon time, 
Whose emblems in the stream at large 
Spell life with man upon a barge. 
Pertaining unto every clime. 

He traced the picture to the sea. 
Where death must every man proclaim 
Possessed of common chance, the same 
That brings him to eternity. 

Beyond this life he could not see, 

Unless with visions of desire 

Which, joined with hope and faith, aspire 

To )-egions that may set us free. 

The information Satan gave 
Was insufficient, all too small, 
To solve the mystery of all 
The things beyond the silent grave. 

His wife came walking through the door, 
And eyed him with a questioning look. 
Yet full of sympathy that took 
His own, averted, to the floor. 



122 

"I heard the stranger's bold remark," 
She ventured with a quivering lip, 
"That claims your soul in ownership 
Ere morning's dawn will melt the dark. 

I heard him speak as if a barn 
Were compensation for your soul. 
Which would be built ere night would roll 
Into the open arms of morn : 

From this and kindred speech I hold 
Thai Satan came to barter here 
For something precious, something dear, 
A human soul worth more than gold. 

I trust, as I have trusted you 
Since we were mai'ried, that we twain. 
Then made as one, may one remain. 
And that this bartering be not true. 

That I may share, as heretofore. 
The feelings which > our efforts bring ; 
If they should fail to share the sting; 
If they succeed, help to do more. 

You do not speak. Well may I fear 
That Satan has supplanted me; 
Your heart, my fancy's own to be 
Now anchored to another pier. 

It must be Satan, I am sure. 
For God who rules this VvOrld and man, 
Would never condescend to plan 
The purchase of a soul by lure." 

"Ah, do not censure me too soon, 
\^n- if you must do not forgot 
That i, your husband, free as yet. 
With riches may confer a boon." 

So Hespar spoke. "This open gi-ate," 
He theji continued, "holds the proof 
That Nathan's bond, in niv behoof. 
Has been delivered but of late. 

To-night the crescent of the moon 
Will faintly glimmer in the west. 
But as she dies this heavy breast 
Will have its burdens broadcast strewn. 

For in the night, I doubt it not. 
The barn which I have planned so lon.'r, 
Of needed size and very strong. 
Will fall a treasure to my lot. 



— 123 — 

The barn must fully be complete 
Before the cock has called the day 
In moi-ning-'s dawn upon the way, 
Which in itself is quite a feat. 

But if it lacks a single tier 
Of any portion in the wall, 
Or the construction of a stall, 
I am deprived of nothing- here. 

Of God the stranger never spoke. 
And may they both remain unnamed, 
So neithei- will be blest or blamed ^ 

If I am bounden to a yoke. 

You are my dearest of the dear. 
As heretofore, so now, and hence ; 
Success stands at the threshold ; thence 
All bitterness must turn to cheer. 

So do not doubt that all comes right; 
My expectations are not vain 
That sunshine and the season's rain 
Will follow all my present plight. " 

1 will maintain you, and extend 
My arm around this house and mine; 
And all our future, I divine. 
On mutual intciest will depend." 

"My love for you will always live," 
She stated, interposing him, 
"But husband, oh! I fear loo slim 
Is love which bartered soul can give. 

It v.'ould be well, I may concede, 
To live within prosperity ; 
For poverty to hide and flee. 
And rievermore your steps impede. 

But more important is your soul ; 
To cheat misfortune you have lost 
Yourself with cheating, and are tossed 
Upon the waves to render toll. 

Were it not better to await 
Fate's verdict of depaited luck? 
If you were safe my woman's pluck 
Would gladly dwell in poor estate. 

You too will view it, that I know, 
As now the matter stands revealed 
To me, though there be much concealed 
In things that How submerged below. 



— 124 — 

I shall not cease to dwell with hope; 
The airs of hope be my delig-ht; 
And may the Master in his might 
Bereave the pit wherein you grope." 

She left her lord, and he was glad; 
It caused him pain to hear her speak 
In words so filled with censure's reek, 
Words stirred by love and kindness-mad. 

He blamed her not, yet fully knew 
That he must brave the fight begun, 
And win the fruits that could be won, 
As if the die and cast were true. 

The battle waging was his own. 
But differently he might ha^e fought 
If circumstances had not wrought 
That he himself be not alone. 

Some potent forms of life abide 
But for an instant to be seen, 
If untoward factors flow between, 
And floodgates cannot hold the tide. 

It woman's foremost gift be love ; 
If she can bury all ol" self, 
And sacrifice all gain and pelf, 
May not the Gods stand guard above? 

May they not lend a willing ear 
To sighs that will escape her breast, 
When agonies have jarred her rest. 
And secret tremblings joined her fear? 

We learn effect must have a cause; 
Why may not cause so cause effect 
That the eft'ect be derelict, 
Or cause eft'ect to cause a pause? 

Now has the mid-night hour arrived; 
The world is hushed, and (luiet reigns 
'Neath star-lid sky, and stillness deigns 
To hold the mantle so contrived. 

The night-watch walking yondei* streets 
Has just succinctly blowed his horn. 
And passing time asunder torn. 
As dying day the new-born meets. 

The moon with crescent bow prepares, 
On the horizon in the west. 
To seek her well-appointed rest 
Where man cannot perceive her lairs 



— 125 — 

All flushed ambition rests unheard, 
And sorrow slumbers in a bed; 
The tears that tainted eyes with red 
Are conquered now in sleep incurred. 

But lo! Behold, in Hespar's yard 
There is a stir; in voices clear, 
Which render song-, there re-appear 
The ramblings of an ancient bard: 

The cleft is made, the cleft is hewn, 
The cleft is full of purpose; 
The wreaths of sorrow round it strewn 
Touch sorrow that has left us. 

Bewail your sorrows, heart of hearts, 
Bewail your inperfection ; 
The cleft is hollowed, and its parts 
Hold human insurrection 

Bewail the soul that will not flee 
When danger-signals flicker; 
That for the pottage will not see 
The gist of wrongful dicker. 

The cleft is made to hold a soul, 
To hold a soul forever; 
The daikness must dwell in the hole, 
And lig'ht will find it never. 

And the commotion that ensued 
Brought shadows flitting here and there; 
All busy with allotted caie, 
And fitted to their roguish mood. 

No derricks laid the burdens down. 
Nor was there wain to haul them o'er ; 
Yet there they were, and more and more 
Piled up the timbers, oaken-brown. 

Whence were they brought, on unseen wings. 
All these materials, wood and stone; 
Whence did they come, and were they prone 
To fill demands of wanted things? 

The shadows that were flitting round 
Seemed full two hundred at the least 
Which moved as like a phantom beast 
With tentacles that reached the ground. 
Another song soon filled the air: 
In numbers fitted, but so low. 
It seemed as if on snapping bow 
Lay nugatory all the hair: 



— 126 — 

Get the plumlines ready fellows; 
Go and see if they are sound; 
They were left on yonder bellows 
That is stretched upon the gi'ound. 

Go and see about the trowels, 
So they be in proper place; 
All ye imps be on your bowels, 
And evade your own disgrace. 

Get the squares and have them ready. 
Have them ready for the work, 
So the woi'k may go on steady, 
And be light as floating cork. 

Find the broadaxe for the labor 
That will instantly begin; 
Do your work to win the favor 
Of the master's pleasing grin. 

Find the hammers to do duty 
In the work that's under way, 
That the structure rise in beauty 
And in symmetry to stay. 

Get ye busy with the chisel. 
With the chisel and the plane; 
And avoid to make a fizzle 
Where the trimming should remain. 

Find the saws to cut the timber 
Where the jointing should be made; 
Be ye nimble at the limber 
Where the buttings must be staid. 

Get ye busy and be working 
With the tools that are at hand; 
Let no imp incline to shirking 
When his work is in demand. 

There soon commenced, on regular plan, 
The work for the foundation walls, 
Divided partly into stalls, 
And stronger where the openings ran. 

And then in outline there arose 
The barn to view, and, all around, 
With timbers to the cross-beams bound 
And joined, showed that it fitted close. 

All promised well, and in the main, 
No craftsmen could have better plied 
Their handiwork, in cunning tried, 
With more results, for stated gain. 



— 127 — 

The shadows flitted to and fro, 
And up and down in studied haste; 
Yet never were committing- wa^te 
In active movements or in throw. 

And fathe]- time was making note; 
Was making note of the events, 
Steeped with some curious portents, 
Unnamed by rules, unknown to rote. 

And then a song, a little sad, 
Swept through the night-air, which as yet 
Was all serene, though change and fret 
Lurk'd in the breeze, bend to be bad: 

Is there stoim upon the way 
Out of yonder western gray; 
Will the elemental roar 
Wildly chase us evermore, 
E'en before the work in hand 
Is upreared by our band? 

If the battle start to rage 

While the work us yet engage. 

It will never be complete; 

For if bugles sound to meet 

Distant foes upon the path, 

We must quell the storming wrath. 

Or perhaps a foolish cock 
May be crowing out to mock, 
And results we hope to bind 
Will be shattered and declined; 
Soon with all his task must end. 
If but time will not forfend. 

All through the night there was a heart 
That could not rest, that could not sleep; 
It carried fear, a fear so deep, 
It would not go, would not depart. 

'Twas Hespar's wife who was aff eared; 
Far past the mid-night had she stood. 
And watched the mass of Satan's brood 
Dance round the barn, and saw it reared. 

Though all was dark, yet could she see 
With eyes that bore the light of love. 
And strength as if from heaven above, 
The structure rise up steadily. 

She saw it rise with keen distrust ; 
She fervently prayed for a scroll, 



— 128 — 

Or sign, to save her husband's soul, 
Imploring God to hold her just. 

But still the work went on and on; 
Completion seemed well nigh in sight; 
Could she find power, find the right, 
To smash it all by word or brawn? 

No, no, not brawn ; it could not hold 
The progress of the imps in check; 
Could not precipitate a wreck. 
Though she were eager to be bold. 

Despair — must it then conquer her, 
And all her effoi'ts be in vain 
To step into the barred domain 
Of powers which no man can stir! 

Where could she turn; what could she do; 
Was there no rescue to avail ; 
Must all her hopes and longings fail; 
Was Satan's triumph to be true? 

But little was there now to mend 
On chambers upon hither side; 
The minutes called that would decide 
The fate of Hespar's soul and end. 

Kickayrakee, so rang the sounds 
In tremors of a woman's voice. 
Like imitation's rarest choice. 
Launched boldly on the airy bounds. 

Kickayrakee, it rang again, 
And true to nature was the call, 
In emulation of the thrall 
That deviates the cock and hen. 

Then in a twinkling quiet reigned ; 
The imps had vanished all in flight; 
Beside the barn built m the night 
No trace or record had remained. 

As soon as light spread o'er the land. 
Rune Hespar and his smiling wife — 
The hero in the present strife — 
Made their inspection hand in hand. 

Around the barn they walked, and found 

In Satan's work, excepting where 

A chamber, only one, was bare, 

A structure well made, straight and sound. 



— 129 — 

"My soul is safe," Rune Hespar said; 
"Your soul is safe," then said his wife; 
And henceforth was their daily life 
A blessed stream with blessings fed. 



RECONCILIATION 

Thirty years had kept a brother 
From a sister's love beguiled ; 
Worse than strangers towards each other 
Were they until reconciled; 
Flames of hatred which engender 
From a spark with garish hiss, 
Seemed a curse when time could render 
Foolish aspects for all this. 

Therefore note that man is aging 
From the cradle to the gTave ; 
And the storms of life are raging 
Round the craft in surging wave ; 
Cares and troubles, fore and after, 
Come with sunshine in the lee ; 
But in joy, effulging laughter, 
Dwells a conscience, clean and free 



FISH LAKE 



Thy shores of ragged depth and height; 
The rills that swell thy bosom's might; 
The wooded hills surrounding thee, 
Cause rapturous, ringing joys to me. 
And as I scan the skyline high, 
And rock the boat, each trembling sigh 
Turns into glee, for here I'm free; 
Life seems a bright, sweet song to me. 

And maidens, fisher-maidens dear, 
With rosy, dimpled cheeks are near ; 
And othei-s too, with mischief rife ; 
Ah ! Nature's due is nature's life. 

Though play shall cease, and labor's tide 
Flood all the fields, thou must- abide; 
May dreams enthrall thy charms at night. 
And memory keep thy pictures bright I 



— 130 — 

BLACKJACK 

Old Blackjack is dead, he is buried and gone, 
And his star, like Venus, adorns the dawn; 
His mourners bear tokens of grief in their face, 
And shed many tears; and their heart's a place 
Where deeds of remembrance that cling to this man, 
Are stored for use in humanity's van. 

The travellers and settlers of days long past 
Remember his kindness from first to last; 
His roof gave them shelter, for them he would toil. 
Be meiry and fuj-nish them gifts of the soil; 
Be ready to map out their course for a stay; 
On journeys to wish them good luck on the way. 

And bravely he served on his country's frontier 
Where bullets came sizzling so mighty near; 
Now w^iiteman and redman,- every gnome 
Regrets his demise, his last journey home; 
However, this course is for all of us here: 
To be born, to live, then end on a bier. 

And since he is gone, and the spirit has fled 
From him who never knew fear or regTet, 
Will others too, like him, their duty perform 
In sunshine, in rain, in every storm? 
Aye, if they live up to his maxim sublime: 
Be just to your fellowmen all the time. 



VANITY 



Empty is all fame and glory 
In this life of seeming fate. 
Though we hear the luring story 
That renown will not abate ; 
Struggles ever do the greeting; 
Throngs are mad in fearful rush ; 
Our ventures, ah, how fleeting! 
Ramparts building — final hush. 

In your silent contemplation 
Shun all superficial kin ; 
And for fairest revelation 
Seek out nature's bosom then ; 
Touch her laughing, glowing embers ; 
But impress upon your mind 
That the world its own remembers. 
Always holding and to bind. 



— 131 — 

, THE MIRACLE 

A fog--en folded ship struck rock 
Not mapped upon her charts; 
With sides that bursted from the shock 
She leaked in all her parts. 

Soon life-boats, filled with human freight, 
Kissed swashing waves in gloom ; 
Four tars remained to challenge fate, 
And bravely face their doom. 

With hours comprest in minutes' toil, 
'Midst dangers never told, 
They launched a raft of Neptune's spoil, 
While clutching at their hold. 

"Stand up, stand up," cried mate to men, 
Then facing waves and night ; 
"We're yet to live, stand up again, 
Don't falter in the fight." 

For long and long they fought for life, 
Until at length the mate 
Alone was left in weary strife 
To battle with his fate. 

The second day had dawned, and lo! 
The fog commenced to lift ; 
And as the sea was clear a throw, 
A boat heaved to the cleft. 

The mate upon the raft was found. 
And rescued by the men ; 
Then, as the boat once more turned I'ound, 
The fog-gap closed again. 



TIP ELI 



A somber feeling filled Tip Eli's heart. 
As he was on his way in street and lane; 
He sought the source, yet ere the mood depart, 
Of truth divine in pictures quite profane; 
He wanted light, some key to daily life, 
Which though obscured or hidden here on earth, 
Reveals at last to soul in blinding strife, 
The motives causing agony and mirth. 

For he beheld an ever passing throng 
In quest of sustenance and lucre bound; 
From respite short it seemed a pricking prong ' 
Was urging them to heave the very ground ; 



— 132 — 

Some walked while others rode behind a horse; 

But most made use of nature's bosom powers ; 

A motley thronj?, of good, or ill or worse, 

Betokened all by toll to working hours. 

He heard their voice, with flourishes of rage, 

In orisons bemoaning time and toil : 

On liberty their prattle spread the guage; 

Equality came tripping to recoil; 

With chaff, however, severed from the grain, 

Due weight attached to every move and speech, 

Ambition urged them ever to attain 

An attitude with true trait to impeach 

Yo men ! Do save us from a cutting yoke 

Which your concept of liberty would mean ; 

True friend indeed is tongue that never spoke 

Equality brings labor's equal glean ; 

No man of worth shifts burdens on him laid 

To others or on state, to ease his course; 

Unequally as talents are displayed. 

Take yours in joy and fling away remorse. 

Then others passed with spare, reflective look, 

Whose cunning piers are built to span a bridge, 

A bridge of wealth that carries over brook 

Of common life to levels on the ridge; 

Smooth, clever fellows, with a smell for gore. 

Whose master minds tie trailers to their kite ; 

Who, bold and keen in acts of business war, 

To caution's deity will pray at night. 

Still others passed who loved the city well ; 

Who felt its pi'ide was parcel of their own; 

Their mighty deeds, intrenched with hallowed spell, 

Made midget souls to tremble and atone. 

In civic virtue men who blaze the way 

Are shepherds seldom seeking for renown; 

And oft too late we bind the wreaths to lay 

On noble brows, ti'ue servants of the town. 

A parson passed who bore a cheerful mien 

And godliness deep-furrowed on his face; 

His body lithe had rendered fulsome lien 

To abstinence and placidness of pace. 

For good of man will parsons rise in zeal, 

Or carry living brimstone in their hand; 

For sordid ends though some of them oft feel 

That they should skim the fat found in the land. 

And yet another, guardian of the law, 

Whose builey figure tramped a measured dip; 

With eve and ear attuned to fractious flaw 



— 133 — 

In peoples' deeds and echoes of the lip; 

With ,'ong-tailed coat, with belt around his waist, 

With solid club that dangled from the side, 

And porchy hat — in picture grim and chaste 

The dreadful law has shrouded civic pride 

The law, the law! Fair beacon to the just, 

Reflects no weary shadows on the way; 

The law, the law! Peremptory in its must. 

To evil causes havoc and dismay. 

Were man bestowed with purest kind of heart, 

The moral lav\' would suffice for us all ; 

The beast in nature prompts the other part 

Of man-made law, our actions to forestall. 

Then came the men with shovel and the pick ; 

Their back was bent, their step so slow and hard ; 

Their garments coarse, skin colored like a brick ; 

Their skill and pay quite low on labor's card. 

But callous hand may hold a gentle dove ; 

The roughest form may be as true as steel ; 

And uncouth looks bear message of a love 

That makes the rents of anquish quickly heal. 

A graveyard, which he found in front of him. 

He entered, and shook -off his reverie; 

Read headstones with inscriptions fresh and dim 

Of those gone hence where troubles cease to be ; 

In lonesome spot, with look replete with hope, 

He found the sexton who had dug a grave. 

And mutely watched him standing on the slope 

Of destiny for potentate and slave. 

"Whose grave is this, my friend, and this and this?' 

He asked the sexton, pointing with his hands ; 

Who answered ; and with purpose not amiss 

Then dwelt on joys of life and deaths' demands: 

"Tomorrow they will bury here the wife 

Of one whom riches bless and spreading fame 

Her death has claimed his closest tie of life, 

And sorrow's specter stalks upon his aim. 

Here lies his son, his father's fairest hope, 

On whom he fondly lavished greatest care ; 

So bright a lad, ere decades could elope, 

Would bring him joy, he hoped, as father's dare; 

And here his daughter, cherub of the home, 

Whose mellow voice was sweet as nightingale; 

When shadows gathered she dispelled the gloam ; 

Her lustrous eyes now star another dale. 

Bereft of these, all else is naught to him ; 

His heart-strings chant a dreary, bitter song; 



— 134 — 

With loved-ones g"one, his sun seems cold and dim; 
His death-knell also sounds I fear, ere long. 
Life sweet and tender, like the f rag-rant flower, 
Is severed in the mid-day of its prime; 
We know not when, for hidden is the hour, 
We bite the dust, completing our time. 

Think not that lusty ways endure and win; 

'Tis true this clamoring turmoil will not cease; 

Nor you nor I will hear the roar and din 

In narrow walls that spell the soul's release; 

As seasons come again to pass away, 

So pride of youth is but a fleeting chime; 

No heart can cherish a perpetual stay ; 

'Tis come and go, and motion all the time." 



ST. RE(iIS 

The grand, sepulchral silence round thy dome, 
St. Regis, speaks with awe-inspii-ing voice ; 
Thy mountain caverns are the cougar's home. 
And in thy jungles hooting owls rejoice; 
The shackles which the world may put on man, 
Are foreign to thy bosom's glowing trust; 
And nature's bondsmen, rearing freedom's span, 
Live undefiled from carion and from lust! 

Down in the valley where Missoula's sheen 
Is mui-muring onward in a thousand sounds, 
And gorgeous armies of perpetual green 
Are tuning timbrels in their airy bounds, 
There fiery pi-inces, in a silvery boat. 
Go wooing fairies in bewitching haunts, 
And upwards fleeing with their fleecy load. 
Mock all the earth with knightly, buoyant taunts. 

Here, heart, abide! And view the scene withal, 
And quench thine ardor in her rapsody; 
Beyond the tempest of the social thrall 
Seize nature's nectar and her melody; 
Behold her tresses in the sweet expanse; 
And clasp her garlands with the deepest joy; 
Behold her flitting mimic and her dance ; 
And drain her cup that carries no alloy! 

Upon the mountain every eye may rest 

On sweeping billows and the distant knoll ; 

Yea, where the icebergs once all life supprest. 

And Indians later levied human toll ; 

These grandeurs which the Rockies only hold, 

In bold relief climb upwards to the clouds; 



— 135 — 

And all the heights, with glories they unfold, 
Impel us to I'ejoice with merry shouts. 

Here pine trees, with their ever livmg green. 
Thrive in their native splendor on the stile; 
And cotton-woods, which intersperse the scene, 
Adorn the yawning crevice or defile ; 
And every path leads over grassy plain. 
While sprigs and limbs creak underneath the feet, 
Until the panorama's golden chain 
Makes dismal adjuncts quite sublime and sweet. 

The world's exacting pretense has no claims 
On all these hills that rear their heads so high ; 
Her fetters are unknown among their aims. 
And folly finds no echo in its cry; 
For unborn ages may it thus remain, 
And agony be stranger to their view ; 
May weary toil no traveller here detain, 
But may their dole his wasted strength renew ! 



DIXON 

In days gone by when western shores were young. 

And the Pacific was yet unexplored. 

Then came here men in other parts unhung. 

To find swift death or live to be adored ; 

From everywhere they came to look for gold. 

Or make adventure classic where they ti'ailed ; 

But woe to him whose zeal was all too bold, 

Who played the errant knight, poor fool, and failed. 

Men from Missouri, sprung from sturdy stock. 
Whose fathers yet saw Spain and France hold sway, 
Who welcomed wildness and the stranger's knock, 
Came where enchantment weirdly bade them stay; 
The frontier call had glories all its own ; 
There was no social usage to obey ; 
Here primal forests graced the mountain cone, 
And silence entered monarch of the fray. 

Such strangeness held John Dixon on this shore. 
And made his heart adore her evening glow; 
But native tribes sang Chief Nahcotta's lore 
In all the realm where waters ebb and flow 
At Baker's bay, the Palux and Nasel ; 
They loved and feared him as no other chief; 
And pios)uM'?d. as their legends fully tell; 
And, long lamenting, found his rule too brief. 



— 136 — 

In quiet haunts dwelt chief Nahcotta's squaws; 

They quarelled, but kept busy as a bee 

Not lipflitly did they take their tribal laws, 

And all had share in keeping- the tepee; 

Yet one, whom nature had with beauty blest. 

Fell victim to John Dixon's every charm, 

Who knew his mind, and plied the chief his quest. 

But proud Nahcotta only waved his arm. 

To be deteri-ed lay not in Dixon's scheme. 

For madly did he plan an ambuscade; 

He shot the chief and quenched his subtle dream: 

But stealthy exit which the slayer made 

Hid not his crime; that spread with lig-htning- speed 

To farthest cranny where the savage dwelt, 

Who all swore vengeance on this bloody deed ; 

With paint and feathers was their war-dance held. 

To evil state had white men all been brought ; 
They quailed in fear; but not on massacre 
Were Indians bent, who, with their culprit caught, 
Took straight to camp fo]- judgment's livery. 
Which tied him down and rasped his head apart; 
And wanton llesh in agony at last 
Gave up the ghost for its eternal start, 
And justice waived on time's receding mast. 



THE PACIFIC 

Thou grand Pacific ! Matchless is thy sight ; 
Thy rolling waves voice inspiration's song; 
Conceit and pride bow humbly to thy might, 
And worship grandeurs which to thee belong; 
The rushing tides which ever claim thine own, 
Recur at regularity's behest; 
And devastations, with their roar and groan. 
Heed neither man, his pursuit, nor his quest. 

Aye, planning mastery of land and seas, 
Man must propitiate thy bosom's thrall ; 
And eager nations bend their stiffened knees 
In tense obeisance, as they rise and fall ; 
And where thy swashing billows kiss the shore 
In sound, in harbor, or in salient bay. 
Thy uses find engagement more ^^nd more, 
And thy domain marks commerce for display. 

With thee must lie the futui-e's glorious dawn 
For realms from China to the Golden Gate, 
And Behring sea to straits of Magellan, 
Or regions that entwine the South Sea's fate ; 



— 137 — 

Forsooth thou viewest nations come and go; 
Their ramparts built for others to destroy; 
But with the centuries' tread each foreign foe 
Must deal with justice to thy people's joy. 

The many isles, that fleck thy vast expanse, 
With radiance blossom under softening breath; 
And vernal eye, with piocreating glance, 
Rears quickened life upon the molds of death; 
Their varied people, children of the sun. 
Revere the riots of thy breakers' roar, 
And all their wants are glutted oft anon, 
And vultures still in ancient regions soar. 

In future's twilight, too, that gleames afar, 

Yon Oi'ient lands greet Occidental dawn; 

And freedom's pageant, ushering in its star, 

Bids justice lule and cunning to be gone; 

Its glowing colors ruminate the sky, 

Which dipping firmament spreads on the shore; 

And common impulse turns to testify 

With deeds auspicious in their brilliant lore. 

America! Let freedom's banner float! 

Yet hear the message that the ocean bears : 

His countless victories are thine to gloat. 

For all his beacons quench the darkest fears; 

Ah, let thy shores rear tokens to his trust, 

Thy parchments bear a stamp of mighty scroll ; 

And in thy strength pursue the course that's just, 

While destiny and honor point the goal! 

ETERNAL FLAMES 

What is the meaning of these awful sounds 
That roll and roll in rapid interlude 
With snarling groans along the pregnant bounds, 
That grind and grind with restive, acid mood ? 
These gurgling sounds that fall and heave again 
To crash against a laden atmosphere; 
These hissing sounds that leave their boiling den 
In frightful volume with a snort and leer? 
These steaming columns followed by a roar. 
Which in diurnal steps regain their tomb, 
Or when renewed climb higher than before, 
And in their orgy spread a deadly fume? 
Or mists that issued settle round the flare. 
Which trembling earth can only supplement 
As slow dispersement with the current air 
Will stir and mix their diverse element? 



— 138 — 

Ah! Mother earth is throbbing- in her spell 

To hold communion with the sun and stars! 

To press with innate streng-th upon her shell 

A role of destiny that beggars Mars 

Yet while transforming all her outward dress, 

And closing seas with new and changing bars, 

Keeps coursing through the realms M'ithout digress, 

A fellow traveller with the other stars. 

Nor loses an iota of her guage 

Through all the years of time's unmeasured flight; 

A strange enigma without let or age, 

That speaks in force and gravitation's might. 

That flies forever without least remorse, 

A world of worlds within their boundless range, 

A part of nature's harmony and course, 

An element of life, of growth and change. 

The human mind has never pierced the veil 

That hides the stars in shrouded destiny. 

Or vacant space that notes their endless sail, 

And found no props that fix their harmony. 

Nor need despair seize on the human heart 

Because these mysteries remain untold ; 

No meaning can attend their cryptic part, 

Which yields no mastery for man to hold. 

The orbs beyond and all the realms above 

Fulfill their course regardless of a hope ; 

Unknown to them is joy, and pain, and love; 

No boon or sori'ow mars theii- banner's scope. 

Inexorably silent in design 

They never change to suit a fallacy ; 

They have no ears to hear an earthly whine; 

No eyes to see the tears of agony. 

And as the earth her daily forfeit gives 

In everb sting, all embracing plight, 

She, ^vithout aim, builds up the mountain cliffs, 

And levels valleys in her ceaseless flig^ht, 

Her ocean's realms are moving with the tide 

The ;-ame today as in an endless past ; 

But never change or ti-emble can abide, 

Though all cosmogony enfold their blast. 

She marks the land with grasses, trees and grains. 

And gentle rains are parcel of her gifts; 

The storm-swept seas, the mountains and the plains, 

And all that moves, are nurselings of her tifts. 

But foolish man still gropes within her halls; 

He finds it dark where light has cast its blaze; 



— 139 — 

.^??u' ^^^\^ ^^^' ^^'^^ ^"^"^s the key and falls 

With headlong- trip on stores that meet his g-aze. 

With blfstering cringe that dooms him here to want, 

A ^^ u Vi^^^^ ^^^'^' ^^' twining, brutish fear. 

And bald abscission, round her pleasing font 

Creation's boast, man, peddles folly here. 

He speaks of freedom, yet he dreams aloud. 

While tantalizing with its flowing robe • 

His selfish seed is tainted in the sprout 

And groveling fear has circled his adobe. 

He proudly gives his judg-ment with a bow, 

Yet wonders if he shows a hardened neck • 

Consumes the yields which increase may allow 

And fancy-duped appoints his porter's deck. ' 

Enacted debts will bring him to the oate 

And casting lots to reap the fruits of tithe • 

He will dispute a weary night's debate, 

And pour out wails like raspings of a scythe. 

He sees confounding shadows in his ways, 

Yet justifies a manifolded speech ; 

He finds affliction with the ceasing days 

But leaves unkempt the broad and flapping leech. 

He cuts in twain the bands of joy and o-jee 

And understanding has a strangled part- ' 

He measures all the broadness of the sea 

And empty-handed leaves the pleading heart. 

He pleads with power and disputes with rio-ht 

but cannot read the valley's sweetest pledge • ' 

He cuts foundations which annoy his sio-ht * 

But cannot see the twilight for the hedge.' 

Yet, as the rays of mighty truth avail 

In all endeavor of the human mind, 

A^^ lu^^" chariots climb the steepest trail 

And banish fear, or strike the monster blind. 

Thereon the people's strivings may be heard 

And violence soon fade away as nio-ht- 

Rejoicing with the freedom of a bird, ' 

They stand encamped against the reign of might. 

Then every tongue shall shun the speech of wrono-* 

And equity assert her equipoise; 

A keen delight shall sway their g'raceful song 

And all the earth be skillful with her noise. 

Then why should man exalt a little chaff, 

Why cut the corn that revels in the sprout *? 

It s worth of speech that lights the tending staff; 

Ihat fells the trembling pillars of the proud 



— 140 — 

It stretches over all the empty void, 
And sets a compass within reason's bend ; 
Its judgment of reproof is safely buoyed; 
It claims the garnish of the firmament. 

It brings the waters from the mountainside, 
Or makes a shelter where its pinions rise ; 
The bitter soul can in its joys abide. 
And smite the face that counts upon disguise. 

It gathers vintage for the waiting eye, 

Of sweetly feeds upon the hiding times ; 

It has an excellency mounting high 

And substance bouncing in the frailest chimes. 

The brilliant rainbow arched as like a tun. 
Stamps nature's hues in quaint, artistic spell; 
Oh toward the west it greets the morning sun, 
And in the east it bids him farewell. 

The mind that lies in bondage and in chains 
Can but perceive the clouds that rcr-i on high 
It hears a tenipest roar where child complains, 
And drpj^O'is g]'oan whei'e hooting owl is nigh. 

And though man flourish like the golden grain, 
Or carve his ensigns on a granite shaft. 
He cannot cleave the fountain or the plain. 
Or limit cause, or thought's immortal craft. 

He cannoi rule the raging sea of truth, 
Or blow the trumpet in her daring sound ; 
His tabernacles rest with sylvan youth 
Who casts the throne of reason to the ground. 

But he is rich who sees an ordered source ; 
Who finds delight in nature's manifest ; 
That dares to grasp her majesty and force. 
And make her agent of his endless quest. 

He breaks the hedges that forbid advance, 
And stands to battle with a victor's shout; 
He casts fanatic dregs to winds of chance. 
And rides upon the superstitious cloud. 

The world's domain encircles all his fame. 
And mountains render grief unto a song; 
He stamps the wilderness with beauty's name. 
And muses on the season's pealing gong. 

He sits upon the flood's indicting board. 
And for the mullilude finds ample room; 
He boasts in riches and in boner's hoa^'d. 
And vesture-weaving tends the turning loom. 



•^^.il^'r'h< 



LIBRftRY OF CONGRESS 




